Broken dreams
by aivana
Summary: The road to a family can be long and painful. Brandon and Kelly are about to find themselves. B/K centered story with appearances of original 8.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Brandon pulled his car into the drive way of Casa Walsh. He killed the engine and sat there quietly for a moment observing what seemed to be a dark house, but he knew his wife was in there. It was their second anniversary, weeks back he planned to do something crazy romantic for her, but he knew that she would not appreciate any of that now, not after the news they received earlier that day. He closed his eyes for a moment replaying the events of the morning.

_Brandon held Kelly's hand giving it a gentle squeeze from time to time as they waited for Andrea, or Dr. Zuckerman as she was known to her patients, to come to her office. Over the last two and half years they were frequent visitors to her office and today they were about finally receive the answer to the question whether they'll be parents someday. They started trying right after their engagement knowing that it won't be an easy ride with Kelly's diagnoses. About a year ago Kelly underwent a surgery to remove endometriosis implants and scar tissue, but here they were after a surgery and two rounds of IVF, still without a baby in their arms._

_Andrea walked in carrying a stack of papers with her, knowing that it was Kelly's medical record made him sick, no one should have such one at 31. _

"_Kelly, Brandon." Andrea nodded to them her face emotionless. She was trying really hard to be doctor first in this case. _

"_How does it look, Andrea?" Kelly asked quietly._

"_The ultrasound showed that the tissue is back on your ovaries and fallopian tubes. It looks worse than before the surgery." Andrea took a breath. "There is a possibility to repeat the surgery again and try IVF, but with how quickly and aggressively it returned, the chances do not look very good." Andrea said truthfully._

"_I don't want to do that." Kelly whispered._

"_Kel, maybe we should think about it…" Brandon started, looking at her he quickly understood that it was not up to discussion. He had no right to force her to do something she did not want to. In the end she was probably right, they'd just get their hopes up and be disappointed in the end once again._

"_What are the chances that I'll get pregnant by myself." Kelly looked at Andrea._

"_Very low, close to zero." This was one of the moments when she hated her job. It was usually about bringing new joy into families. This time she was breaking the dreams of two people who also happened to be her very good friends._

_Kelly nodded. "Thank you, Andrea." She said quietly before she stood up and left the office._

_Brandon stood up too. "Thanks, Chief." He gave her a quick hug and turned towards the door._

"_Brandon." He turned to face her again. "I'm sorry."_

"_I know." He smiled sadly before he turned again and headed outside the door to find his wife._

He opened his eyes again looking at the house in front of him. It was always full of love and laugher, he hoped that one day there will be also baby feet patting around it. Brandon took a deep breath before he grabbed his belongings and the single red rose he bought her and got out of the car.

He spotted her as soon as he walked through the door, sitting on the sofa in the living room her knees pulled close to her. He dropped his belongings on the table and headed to join her on the sofa the single rose still in his hand. Wrapping his free hand around her shoulders he kissed the top of her head. "Happy anniversary, Kel." He said laying the rose on the coffee table in front of them.

"Happy anniversary to you too, Brandon." She said quietly with pain in her voice. After the news they received that morning she completely forgot about it. Kelly closed her eyes replaying the events from two years ago in her head.

_The bright Californian sun was warming her skin as she walked down the aisle on the shoulder of her father Bill Taylor. Her blond hair was falling down on her shoulders in neat waves a single white orchid tucked behind her right ear, the only fancy reminder of the occasion. Dressed in a simple white knee-length halter dress and barefoot she walked towards the man who captured her heart years ago and now was finally ready to capture her future as well._

_It took Brandon four years and unexpected meeting in Hawaii to admit that moving away to Washington was a mistake. Despite trying to convince himself otherwise he never stopped loving her, just as she never stopped loving him, even if she was trying to substitute him with Matt or Dylan, there was just one Brandon Walsh and she knew it. Their romance rekindled shortly after he moved back to Los Angles and year and half later they were standing face to face in front of the priest and their families and friends both ready to start their forever."Your beautiful, Kel." Brandon whispered as her father handed her to him, taking in every single detail of her._

_The ceremony has flown by and before they knew it, they were Mr. and Mrs. Walsh. His lips finally met hers in their first kiss as husband and wife. She smiled brightly when they pulled apart, everything was finally as it should be._

Brandon pulled her close feeling her body tremble and new tears streaking down her cheeks. He run his fingers through her hair soothing her like a little child. "It's okay Kel, just let it out." He whispered, feeling tears in his eyes too.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Brandon quietly carried the tray with food into the bedroom. Knowing that Kelly was tired and in no state to go to work after yesterday he let her sleep in. He set the tray on the nightstand and sat on the bed next to his wife who was still soundly asleep. He cupped her face with his right hand and gently caressed her cheek with his thumb, watching her as she slowly open her eyes looking at him. "Morning beautiful." He said softly.

"Morning Brandon." She said sleepily, before she noticed the time on the clock. "I'm late for work. Why didn't you wake me up earlier?" She tried to get out of the bed but Brandon held her back.

"You're not late, Kel. I called in and let them know you won't be coming today."

"You did that?" She smiled softly at him.

"Among other things." He pointed with his head towards the tray with the food on the nightstand. "You should eat something."

"I guess so." She said quietly as he set the tray on the bed. "Are you going to join me?"

"No, I already had mine." He smiled standing up from the bed and heading into the bathroom.

"Brandon what's this?" Kelly asked pulling out an envelope from under the plate.

"I don't know. Why don't you open it?" He shrugged walking back and sitting on his side of the bed.

Kelly gave him a confused look, but opened the envelope anyway pulling out the contents. "Two plane tickets to London for tomorrow? And a cruise in Mediterranean?" She raised her eyebrows looking at him.

"You know how we never went on our honeymoon because of work? I think now is the right time to get away from Los Angeles." Brandon smiled at her.

"But they won't let me take so much vacation." Kelly protested.

Brandon smiled mischievously. "Your boss was very receptive towards this idea and according to my information, he won't be expecting you at work for the next two and half weeks."

Kelly laughed. "I see that you've everything under control."

"Absolutely. Brenda, Dylan and Kyle are expecting us in London tomorrow and we will fly to Venice on Sunday to board the cruise." He flashed her a smile.

"Thank you Brandon!" She said seriously. "I don't know what I would do without you."

He leaned in and cupped her face with his hand. "Kel, I said it before and I'll say it again. This does not change anything for me. I love you and want to be with you. Always." He brought her face closer to his and kissed her softly brushing the tears away from her cheeks as they pulled apart. "Now eat something before you start packing. I have to stop at the Beat for a bit to drop an article there. I should be back in about an hour." He smiled kissing her forehead.

* * *

Brandon walked into the office of Beverly Beat. Ever since he returned to Los Angeles few years ago from time to time he did some work for Steve & Janet as freelancer. The room was unusually quiet and the only person whom he saw was Steve reading something at his desk. He did not notice Brandon until he stood in front of his desk. "Alone?" Brandon asked watching Steve as he slipped the papers into the drawer.

"Hey Brandon! Yes, Jake is sick. Janet stayed at home with him today, so everything falls on my head." Steve faked a smile, he wasn't in a good mood which didn't go unnoticed by Brandon but he decided to let it slip.

"Don't tell me you're already done with the story." Steve changed the subject quickly.

"Yup, all ready." Brandon handed him the flesh drive. "Me and Kelly are going away tomorrow, I wanted to finish it before we leave."

"I knew, I could count on you." Steve faked a smile.

"Okay Sanders, we're not going to be beating around the bush here. What's going on?" Brandon asked leaning against the table.

"I've no clue what are you talking about." Steve rested against his chair.

"Come on Steve. I've known you for sixteen years." Brandon looked at him folding his arms.

Steve took a deep breath. "I've a son." He breathed out.

"Yes, you do. His name is Jake, he's two and I'm his godfather."

Steve opened the drawer and pulled out a photo handing it to Brandon. "Another one."

Brandon looked at the photo, Steve was obviously not kidding the boy on the photo was his carbon copy.

"His name is Noah, he's in France where he lived with his mom."

"Clare?" Brandon asked raising his eyebrows.

Steve nodded. "She died 8 days ago, car crash. He's still in France."

"Wow!" Brandon was speechless for a bit. "Have you told Janet?"

"No, I just found this morning. I've no idea how I'm going to explain this to her." Steve rested his head in his hands for millionth time that day. "I just want to do the right thing. I don't want to leave him there, but I've a family to think about too."

"I don't know what to say, Steve. It won't be easy, but I think you're about to do the right thing." He patted his friends back.

"I hope so." Steve whispered. "And I really hope that Janet will think the same."

"Don't expect her to be excited, but I'm sure she'll come around. I mean, you didn't know about him and it all happened before you two even knew each other, it's not like you cheated on her." Brandon said.

"That's the point, she might think I knew it all the time and never told her." Steve sighed.

"Come on Steve, you're now talking nonsense. Have a little faith in her."

"I do, but I swear that I was never this scared in my life. Whatever happens, I'll be flying to Paris this week to get him, I just hope I'll still have a wife to return to." Steve said looking away.

* * *

"Zero?" Donna asked astonished. "There has to be something they can do."

Kelly finished Ruby's piggy tails and leaned back looking at her best friend. "Yes, we can go through it all again, surgery, tests, IVF, injections, more test and injections, but the outcome will be very likely the same." Kelly sighed. "I don't want to do that again, this way we have some closure and can hopefully move on. I don't want this to completely take over our relationship. In many ways it already did." Kelly admitted.

"How is Brandon taking it?" Donna asked rubbing her prominent 8 month belly.

"He's hurting, although he would never admit it, at least not in front of me. But he's amazing, he's Brandon you know. So he bought us tickets to London and cruise in Mediterranean. Belated honeymoon." Kelly laughed.

"That's sweet. When are you two leaving?"

"Tomorrow. I was a wreck yesterday after the news and he thinks getting out of here will help us both. Plus we will visit Brenda, Dylan and Kyle and see some cool places in Europe." Kelly smiled.

"I agree with him. But don't get too excited, if its belated honeymoon, I hope you'll get to see some places, not just the bedroom in your cabin." Donna joked.

"Whatever is fine with me." Kelly giggled. "I really need to get away from here. It might sound stupid, but I was putting so much pressure on myself to have a baby the old-fashioned way…get pregnant, carry the child and give birth to it. Now I know it's not in the cards and it suddenly makes me relieved. Sooner or later we will look into adoption and it feels right." Kelly smiled softly while tickling Ruby who was squealing in delight.

"Believe me, the old-fashioned way is not much fun. Especially not the pregnancy part, you are nauseous and moody, you feel unattractive, someone is constantly kicking your ribs or gallbladder. No fun at all." Donna groaned. "I can't wait for this one to be over."

"Well this little one better stays put for the next two weeks, I don't want to miss the birth of my nephew." Kelly smiled.

"Two more weeks? Kel, you are killing me. But I promise I'll do my best not to be tempted to evict him for the next two weeks." Donna laughed.

"Thank you!" Kelly laughed too. "I should probably get going, I promised Brandon I'll pick up our dinner on my way home and I still need to finish the packing." Kelly said kissing Ruby's forehead before putting her down and hugging her friend.

"I'll miss you. Say hi to Brenda, Dylan and Kyle from us. And have fun on your honeymoon." Donna winked.

"Knowing Brandon I'll have lots of fun." Kelly laughed. "Take care of yourself. We'll be back in no time and then it will be time for this little guy to arrive."

"Oh, yeah. The end of my misery is in sight." Donna laughed too.

* * *

Kelly walked through the front door of Casa Walsh, her eyes fell on the suitcases in the hall that were already packed for their trip. Smiling she dropped her keys on the table and headed into the kitchen. On her way home from Silver's she stopped at the Peach Pit and picked up dinner for her and Brandon, who was nowhere to be seen. She set the bags on the counter and headed upstairs. Finding Brandon turned out to be an easy mission, he was sitting on their bed lost in his thoughts.

"Hey, you!" Kelly said quietly sitting next to him.

"Hi Kel!" He returned to reality smiling at her softly. "How are the Silver's doing?"

"They are fine. I brought the dinner from Peach Pit."

"I'll be right downstairs."

"Okay." Kelly stood and headed outside of the room, but stopped in the doorway and turned back to Brandon. "Are you alright?" She asked looking at him.

"Yes, I'm fine. I'll join you in the kitchen in a minute." Brandon forced a smile.

"Alright." Kelly shrugged walking out of the bedroom. She was sure that something was bothering him, but decided not to push it. He'll tell her when he's ready anyway, it was his way of dealing with things. Returning into the kitchen she took out plates from the cupboard and served the food on them. Just when she was about to carry them to the table she heard Brandon's steps on the stairs and soon he appeared in the kitchen, he leaned against the door frame and watched her for a bit before he spoke.

"I've something to ask you, it has nothing to do with us…I'd just like to have woman's perspective on this."

Kelly set the plates back on the counter. "So what is it?"

"Let's say you're with someone for a long time and then your partner finds out he has a child he never knew about…. How would you react?"

Kelly thought for a second. "I'd be mad. No, I'd be furious at first and felt cheated."

"Even if you knew that he really had no clue about the child?" Brandon questioned.

Kelly nodded. "After some time, when everything sank in…I'd be glad that at least one of us had a dream come true." She finished quietly looking down at the plates with food.

Without a word Brandon left his place at the door frame and walked to her pulling her into a hug, she buried her face into the nape of his neck. "I'm sorry Kel." He whispered.

They stood there in tight embrace for a few seconds before Kelly pulled away. "So, do I have to worry about something like that?" She asked curiously.

"No." Brandon grinned. "I'm not aware of any mini-me's running around the world."

"Who was this about then?" She asked picking up the plates and finally carrying them to the table.

For a bit Brandon contemplated whether to tell her, but if everything went according to Steve's plan she'll find out anyway. "Steve."

"What?!" Kelly turned around surprise showing on her face.

"He found out today, he has an eight year old son." Brandon followed her to the table.

"Wow. Talk about surprise…" She tried to do the math and figure out who Steve was dating at that time while sitting down. Her eyes grew big when she put the pieces together. "Clare?" She asked looking directly at Brandon who was by now sitting across from her.

"Yes." Brandon nodded his head. "There is more to it, Kel… Clare died in a car crash near Paris over a week ago, that's how Steve found out…the lawyers contacted him."

"I can't believe it. Clare is dead and she and Steve had a child together… It just seems so bizarre." Kelly sat there stunned.

"That were my first thought as well when he told me." Brandon admitted.

"What is he going to do now?"

"Bring the boy home." Brandon said munching on some fries.

"What about Janet?" Kelly questioned, the plate with food still untouched in front of her.

"Let's hope that after some time, she'd think that it was the right thing to do."

"That means, she has no clue."

"I don't know about the situation now, but when Steve told me she did not know yet."

"That will be a hard pill to swallow, not just for her, but for their whole family." Kelly said playing with some of her fries.

"Yes, it will. But enough about them, are you getting excited about our trip?" Brandon grinned.

"Yes…" Kelly smiled. "But I'd be much more excited if you actually told me where we're going."

"Nice try, Kel." Brandon chuckled. "First London to see Brenda, Dylan and Kyle and then we'll head to Venice…the rest is as I already told you surprise." Brandon winked at her.

"Not fair… I don't know what to pack." Kelly pouted her lip playfully.

"Whatever you pack will be okay, besides you already packed like half of your wardrobe." Brandon laughed.

"Well if you tell me, maybe I can leave something at home." Kelly gave him puppy dog eyes trying it once again.

"Not going to happened. But I'll tell you something…if it was up to me, the black skimpy bikini would be enough." Brandon grinned kissing her neck as he stood up from the table and carried his plate into the sink.

"Oh, yeah…because it's absolutely appropriate attire for a dinner in restaurant." Kelly rolled her eyes.

"Who said anything about dinner in restaurant?" Brandon laughed.

"So I take it that you're planning to keep me hostage in the bedroom."

"That's not a bad idea…not at all, Kel." Brandon laughed. Seeing the frustration in her face he kissed her forehead. "If I told you now, it wouldn't be a surprise anymore. Just wait a few days. You'll have fun, I promise." Brandon said sitting back across from her and intertwining his fingers with hers.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Earlier that day Dylan and Kyle picked up Brandon and Kelly at Heathrow airport while Brenda had yet another rehearsal. They all enjoyed nice dinner before the three-year old Kyle reluctantly headed to bed bribed with a promised trip to park with his father, uncle and aunt the next day. The four adults enjoyed a quiet evening in the living room of Brenda and Dylan's house just catching up.

"So it takes belated honeymoon to get the two of you to Europe and finally visit us." Brenda playfully pouted her lip looking at her brother and Kelly who were sitting close to each other on the sofa across from her and Dylan.

"If my memory serves me right you have not visited Los Angeles either since our wedding." Brandon laughed. "The last two times Dylan came just with Kyle and if we haven't visited our parents at the same time we wouldn't have seen you for two years." He grinned.

"Fair enough." Brenda laughed.

"So how's life in Los Angeles? How is everyone doing?" Dylan asked pulling his wife closer to him.

"Donna and David's little guy is due in four weeks, but if it was up to Donna he'd be evicted by now." Kelly laughed.

"Come on, it can't be that bad." Brenda smiled.

"It is, believe me." Brandon chipped in. "It's scary at moments." He laughed.

"We had Ruby over a few times lately to help them out while David was in Japan, she's getting into the crazy toddler age, but she's still the sweet cuddly little thing she was." Kelly finished.

"What about Steve & Janet and the kids?" Brenda asked.

"How's my god-daughter?" Dylan laughed.

"They are fine." Brandon looked at Kelly deciding this wasn't the right time to talk about the mess Steve found himself suddenly in.

"The kids are growing like a weed. Maddy is already in second grade, loves reading and plays soccer. The girl is so smart, she must be taking after Janet." Kelly laughed. "Jake is like every two-year old I guess, handful when he wants to. They are both great kids."

"That leaves us with Andrea." Brenda concluded.

"Well Andrea is having some problems with Jesse, she did not talk about all the details, but things went downhill once he remarried. His new wife is giving Hannah hard time. But she met someone new and is totally smitten." Kelly smiled snuggling to Brandon who wrapped his arms around her.

"Now I want all the details." Brenda said with a mischievous smile on her lips.

"Women and their gossiping." Dylan rolled his eyes playfully.

"They met at work, he's a doctor. Neurology, I think. We met him only once, he seemed like a nice guy." Kelly looked at Brandon who nodded in agreement.

"Doctor? Why does that not surprise me." Brenda giggled. "I was somehow sure that she'd end up with a doctor. She loves her work, doesn't she?"

"Very much so." Brandon nodded intertwining his fingers with Kelly. "She's also great at it, but we already knew that she'll be." He smiled.

"Kel, I still can't believe that you are back at West Beverly High." Brenda laughed.

"Believe me, neither can I. When we were graduating I promised myself to never return there again. But the offer was too good to refuse. I love it there and I love my job." Kelly smiled.

"Is Mrs. Teasley still there?" Dylan chipped in.

"Yup, still there. The kids apparently love her." Brandon laughed.

"Speaking of kids, you two should hurry up before our parents start to harass me with another one, as my husband already does." Brenda laughed playfully rolling her eyes at Dylan.

"We're working on that." Brandon said quietly giving Kelly's hand a gentle squeeze.

Brenda observed them for a moment, the way Brandon reacted left her puzzled. So she rather dropped the subject quickly.

"So when is your other book coming out Dylan?" Brandon asked trying to break the awkward silence that suddenly filled the air.

"Hopefully around Christmas. I've meeting with my agent in a few days, we have to settle some minor details with the publisher." Dylan wrinkled his nose not really looking forward to that.

"Who would've thought back in college that Dylan McKay will be one day a famous poet." Brandon smiled.

"Well we were not expecting you to work at LA Times either, you were supposed to be running for president by now." Dylan laughed picking on Brandon.

"Nah, I never really enjoyed being in politics, its ugly and dirty. It's more fun to write about it. Besides I don't think that Kel would enjoy being the first lady. " Brandon laughed, kissing the top of Kelly's head who smacked him playfully in return making them all burst in laugher.

"It's really great to have you here." Brenda exclaimed. "I miss those old times in LA, now we barely see anyone from our friends."

"You should come back to LA sister." Brandon smiled.

"From time to time I think about it, Dylan would go back in heartbeat." Brenda looked at him, seeing him nod in agreement. "But I love theater and would miss my work so much."

"Well we still have Hollywood in LA." Kelly said.

"I know, but it's not the same. I don't think I could do movies, I'd miss the contact with audience." Brenda smiled absently before she yawned, making Dylan look at the clock.

"When did it get so late?" He laughed. "You two must be tired by now."

"It's just 5 pm in LA, but it sure was a long flight." Brandon smiled watching Kelly who was now yawning too. "I think it's bed time for all of us." He laughed softly as Kelly nodded.

* * *

As they promised the previous day, Dylan, Brandon & Kelly took Kyle to the park next day, Brenda joined them later on after she managed to get out of the rehearsal earlier, much to Edward's discontent, but she couldn't care less. She wanted to spent as much time as possible with the Walsh's before they leave for Italy.

The boys were running ahead giving Brenda and Kelly time to catch up on things. "Kel, if I said something that I shouldn't yesterday..." Brenda said hinting at the children talk she started but cut short.

"You didn't." Kelly said quietly. "We're used to it by now, we are married for two years and know each other like…forever…so pretty much everyone is hinting that it's time." She looked away.

"I know that it can get stressful…" Brenda trailed off.

"Yes, it can when you set it as your priority and fail. The truth is, Brandon and I…we are not going to have children…at least not biological ones." She looked at Brenda.

"I didn't know you two were having problems." Brenda looked at her surprised.

"It's me who's having problems, Brandon is perfectly capable of having children." Kelly took a deep breath. "I've a medical condition that makes it pretty much impossible for me to get pregnant and when I get pregnant it causes miscarriage."

"So you were pregnant?" Brenda asked before she bit her lip. "Sorry I shouldn't have…"

"It's okay." Kelly smiled softly. "Yes, I was pregnant back in college with Brandon's baby. We found out few weeks before graduation…I lost the baby days after that. That's when the doctor told me about my condition, but the odds of having baby were way better than those we have now."

"I'm sorry…" Brenda said quietly. "There has to be something they can do."

Kelly just shook her head. "I had a surgery a year ago, but everything returned back to the same state within the year. There is not much more they can do, it's definitive. Andrea told us two days ago, that's when Brandon booked the trip, we needed to get away from LA, get away from everything."

"And here I am digging in it." Brenda smiled sadly.

"You didn't know, there are not many people who know about it, it's not exactly a good conversation subject." Kelly smiled

"Kel, I know that I'm not in LA, but if you need anyone to talk to, I'm just a phone call away, always there to listen, okay?" Brenda smiled squeezing Kelly's hand.

"Thanks, Brenda!" She smiled too. "So what it is with Dylan harassing you to have another one?"

Brenda just rolled her eyes. "I swear that he is obsessed with having another one ever since Kyle turned two. He's constantly in my face wanting to talk about it, the funny thing is that before Kyle he never even considered having a child."

"You know, I can't really blame him. Seeing what you and Brandon have together…maybe he wants the same thing for Kyle. I mean he grew up as an only child, Erica came around when he was already an adult. The same thing happened to me, sometimes I wish that David, Erin & Joy came into my life earlier so I could have someone to lean on while growing up." Kelly smiled.

"I never thought about that." Brenda said quietly. "It's just our relationship is in a great place now, I'm scared that if we add another baby into the mix it will change things." Brenda admitted.

"Having a baby always changes things, I can see it all around. But it might make things better. Who would have thought that Steve Sanders would be a loving father, driving his daughter to soccer practices in a family van instead of corvette. Having Madeline and Jake changed him much more than he's ever willing to admit. You already said that having Kyle changed Dylan, maybe you should take your chances. Having another one might make things even better." Kelly said.

"I always forget that you've a degree in psychology." Brenda laughed.

"Child psychology. But it comes handy sometimes." Kelly laughed too as the two of them intertwined their arms heading to their boys.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Kelly stared into the distance while standing on the balcony. The muted shades of orange and purple were coloring the horizon as the sun was setting down. She and Brandon boarded the cruise earlier that day. After a nice dinner in one of the restaurants they returned back to their room to enjoy a quiet evening, both still slightly tired from the time change and traveling in the last days. She felt Brandon wrap an arm around her as he handed her a glass filled with red wine.

"Lost in your little world?" He asked kissing her neck from behind.

She nodded slowly sipping the wine. "It's beautiful." She referred to the sunset she's been watching.

"You're beautiful." Brandon smiled softly leaning against the railing while he ran his finger tips down the side of her face.

"Words like that, are going to get you anywhere." Kelly smiled turning to face him.

"Really?" Brandon leaned in with mischievous smile on his lips kissing Kelly gently.

"Really." She breathed out as she parted her lips allowing Brandon to deepen the kiss.

"So what were you thinking about before I came?" Brandon asked curiously as the two of them pulled apart, wrapping his arms around her as they watched the darkening sky.

Kelly remained silent for a bit considering whether she should tell him the truth. After all they came there to forget not to rub salt into their wounds. "I've been thinking how much I love you and how lucky I am to have you on my side through all of this. I don't know what I'd do without you." She said quietly.

"You don't have to think about that." He kissed her neck smiling softly. "I'm here and I'm not going anywhere. We're in this together and one way or another, one day we will have the family we're both longing for so much. I promise."

"I believe you." Kelly whispered softly. They stayed there Brandon with his arms wrapped around Kelly, standing still watching the coastline before the last rays of light disappeared and Brandon felt Kelly shiver in the cold breeze that came with the night.

"Let's go inside." He said softly taking her hand in his, leading her inside the room.

Kelly put the wine glass down on the table, while Brandon closed the glass door behind them. He caught her watching him with a mischievous smile on her lips as he turned around. "What's going on in the pretty head of yours?" He grinned.

"Nothing." She smiled innocently.

Brandon furred his brows. "You're a terrible liar."

"You're right. I'll be right back." She kissed him quickly before she grabbed something from the dresser and disappeared behind the bathroom door.

Brandon walked into the bedroom sitting back on the bed pulling his tie out-of-place. He was glad to see a smile on her face, she's been sad for far too long and he couldn't bear seeing her like that knowing there was a very little he could do to make her feel better. The last two years felt like a blur. Sometimes he wondered if they were not trying too hard, each and every unsuccessful step building an invisible wall between them…he wanted to break the wall, he wanted her back, he wanted what they had back, the way it was before this whole madness started. He remembered the old times when they were carelessly walking on the beach holding hands, laughing at silly jokes that no one else would understand, making love when they felt like it. Times when he would come home and be greeted with a smile instead of tears in her eyes because it did not work once again. Over the months they both tried to be strong on the outside, not let people know what they were going through, but when they were left alone, their guards fell down and all the sadness and feelings of defeat sat in. Brandon wanted to change that, more than anything.

He heard the bathroom door open and close before he saw Kelly standing in the bedroom doorway wearing nothing more than a short white lace nightgown, if his memory served him right the same one she had on for their wedding night.

"Mr. Walsh you're staring." Kelly giggled seeing his expression.

"I like what I see." He winked. "You just love giving me heart attacks, don't you?" He asked playfully.

"Back at home you talked about a honeymoon, so I thought I'll pack little something you might like." Kelly smiled innocently crossing the short distance between the door and bed.

Brandon pulled her down to him pressing her into the sheets and kissing her feverishly. "Too bad you won't be wearing that skimpy thing for too long." He mumbled between the kisses running his hand up her thigh. After all there was still a hope that everything will be "normal" one day.

* * *

"I'm exhausted." Kelly panted sitting on the edge of the bed. She and Brandon spent the day in Bari. After sightseeing in the morning, they had a nice lunch in one of the small restaurants near the attractions and topped it with a nice gelato, before returning back to the cruise ship. Kelly laid back on the bed, turning her head to Brandon who laid next to her.

"I'm glad you never told me where exactly we will be going." Kelly smiled.

"See, I was doing it for your own good and you were so adamant to know everything." Brandon laughed taking her hand in his intertwining their fingers.

"You can say it." Kelly giggled.

"I told you so." Brandon said cheerfully pulling her close to him. They laid there in silence for a bit just resting.

"Bran?" Kelly freed herself from his embrace and laid on her side so they were facing each other.

"What is it Kelly?" Brandon asked curiously.

"You were right about something else too…" Kelly said quietly. Brandon gave her a surprised look, but remained silent to let her tell him whatever was on her mind.

"I've been thinking about what Andrea told us, and you were right, we should try again…" Kelly looked at him expectantly.

"Are you sure?" Brandon looked at her surprised by her sudden change of mind.

Kelly nodded. "I thought I was ready to move on, I tried to tell myself I was ready to move on. But I'm not, I know I'd regret it if we stopped while there is still even a small chance of having baby…" Her voice trailed off.

Brandon rested his hand on the side of her face before speaking. "If that's really what you want, than we will try again. I told you already at the beginning, I won't push you into anything you don't want to do, it's your body after all. Seeing what you went through the last two years, I mean it even more. We can still look into adoption." Brandon raised his eyebrows.

"I want to do it one more time, surgery, IVF, everything…I need some closure, I think both of us need it after everything we went through." Kelly looked at him determinedly. "We can still look into adoption in a year or so. I guess it's something we are going to do whether we are able to have a baby or not."

"Alright, Kel. We will talk to Andrea once we return back home." Brandon nodded.

"That's of course if you want to go through it with me." Kelly looked at him waiting for his answer.

Brandon gave her a reassuring smile. "I do, I wouldn't want to go through it with anyone else. Of course I wish it was easier, but I'll be right at your side, just like I was before."

"Thank you!" Kelly mouthed quietly.

"Have I told you how much I love you lately?" Brandon asked pulling her into a hug.

"You kind of let it slip." Kelly wrinkled her nose, giving him a quick kiss on his lips.

"I better keep saying it, because I really mean it." Brandon leaned in going for a longer one. "I'm glad you changed your mind." He pushed a few loose strands of hair out of her face.

"Me too." Kelly smiled snuggling close to him. "Now that I've this out of my head, I can enjoy the rest of our vacation." Kelly giggled.

"I'm glad to hear that." Brandon smiled. "Anything on your mind, Mrs. Walsh?"

"I do have a few ideas." Kelly smirked freeing herself from Brandon and straddling him on the bed. "I think you might approve some of them." She raised her brows before leaning down and kissing him passionately.

"If the rest is anything like the this, I won't have any objections." Brandon grinned kissing her again as his hands found their way under her summery dress.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Kelly opened her eyes as the sun shone into the room, they forgot to close the curtains yesterday. A small smile crept on her lips when she thought about last night, who cares about curtains there were more important things going on. She glanced at the clock which read 6 am, it was still early but she knew she won't be able to go back to sleep. Freeing herself from Brandon's embrace she slipped out of the bed picking the scattered pieces of clothing from the floor on her way out. She quickly glanced one more time at her sleeping husband before heading into the living area of their cabin. After finding one of Brandon's shirts and slipping it on she grabbed her cell and headed out on the balcony.

Their trip was slowly nearing its end. During the last eight days she didn't get to see much of Europe but that did not bother her at all. After their first day when they visited Bari she and Brandon spent most of their time in bed, talking, loving, laughing….simply enjoying the newfound peacefulness in their relationship. There were a few days when they had a lunch or dinner in one of the cruise restaurants or headed into the town for a walk when the ship was docked. But most of the time was spent in the privacy of their cabin. Kelly made herself comfortable in one of the lounge chairs and dialed the familiar number, if she did the math right it was shortly after 8 pm in Los Angeles.

"Hi stranger!" She heard the familiar on the other end of line.

"Hi Don! How are you doing?" Kelly asked. They haven't talked since Kelly and Brandon left Los Angeles eleven days ago.

"Let's see, I'm still pregnant, which is and isn't a good thing." Donna giggled. "We're fine, but nothing changed. I can't wait for this pregnancy to be over and meet the little guy."

"You'll have him in your arms before you know it. Just a few days left." Kelly consoled her.

"Yes, that's what Andrea said today too. Enough about me though. How is the cruise? How is Europe?" Donna asked.

"Cruise is great and I haven't seen much of Europe." Kelly giggled.

Donna laughed. "I told you Brandon will held you hostage in the bedroom."

"Maybe it's the other way around." Kelly giggled. "We visited Bari on the first day and then saw a bit of Athens and Corfu. We're now by the Croatian coast so I hope we manage at least a short walk somewhere, we should return to Venice in two days."

"Sounds great. I'd go there in a heartbeat." Donna enthused.

"From what I saw it's beautiful." Kelly said.

"It's good to hear you are in good mood Kel. Looks that Brandon nailed it once again." Donna chuckled.

"Yes, we're doing good job avoiding all the baby business. Although we had a small talk about it." Kelly admitted.

"And? What's the result?" Donna asked curiously.

"I'll tell you when we return." Kelly laughed.

"Okay. Not fair, but okay." Donna pouted playfully on the other end of line. "You know with the amount of time you two probably spent in bed during the trip, I wouldn't be surprised if you come home pregnant."

"I would agree with you, if I didn't know it's impossible. But I'm still having great time." Kelly giggled much to Donnas' relief on the other end, she knew she was in a sensitive territory. Having this discussion with anyone just a mere week back, Kelly knew that she'd be in tears by now. Something changed during the trip. Brandon's words from the first day still echoed in her mind, one _way or another they'll have the family they dream about_, she believed him. Deep inside she knew that once they start the whole procedure again she'll have her falling apart days, but for now she just choose to belive in his words.

Kelly was pulled out of her thoughts by Donnas voice. "I'm sorry to cut this short Kel, but I have to go. It looks that Ruby's having another meltdown."

"Okay, give her a kiss from me and tell the baby boy to wait till his aunt and uncle return from Europe." Kelly giggled.

"Will do. Have fun for the rest of your trip!" Donna said.

"Thanks, Don!"

"Bye!" They both said before Kelly closed her cell and laid it next to her. She rested her head on the lounge chair and watched the coastline they were passing. Lost in her thoughts she did not notice the glass door when it opened and closed again. She felt a kiss on the crown of her head before she heard his voice. "I missed you in bed, Kel."

Kelly smiled as he joined her in the lounge chair. "I woke up early and knew I won't be able to go back to sleep so I came here and called Donna instead."

"How are they doing?" Brandon asked playing with her hair.

"Good, baby boy is still baking." Kelly smiled leaning in and giving him a soft kiss.

"That's good I guess." Brandon pulled her in for another one.

"I think we should move this inside." Kelly whispered as the kissing got intense.

"Not feeling adventurous today?" Brandon asked raising his eyebrows.

"As tempting as it might be, not really." Kelly wrinkled her nose.

Brandon laughed helping her up and heading inside.

"Do you think we'll see anything from Croatia?" Kelly giggled between the kisses.

"Doubtful." Brandon mumbled as they landed in the sheets.

* * *

It was 3:14 in the morning when the phone rang at Casa Walsh. Brandon picked up the receiver groggily. Kelly and he returned from Europe previous day. "Brandon Walsh speaking."

"Hi Brandon! It's David, sorry to disturb you this early." David said a slight panic in his voice.

"Hi! What's going on?" Brandon asked feeling Kelly squirm next to him.

"Donna is in labor, I need to bring her to the hospital, but can't reach her mom. Can we bring Ruby and Erin over?"

"Sure, bring them over."

"Thanks! We'll be there in 15-20 minutes."

"Alright. See you soon." Brandon hung up the phone.

"Who was that?" Kelly asked sleepily snuggling to him.

"David. Donna is in labor, they are bringing over Ruby and Erin." Brandon wrapped his arms around her.

"So she waited till we came back." Kelly smiled absently, opening her eyes suddenly. "Wait. You said Erin?" She sat up quickly. "Erin is staying with them?" She asked confused.

"It looks that way. I'm going to set up the pack & play for Ruby. She'll sleep in our room, right?" He looked at Kelly.

"I think so, Erin will be in the guest room." Kelly said trying to figure out what was going on and why Donna never mentioned Erin when they spoke together a few days ago.

Twenty minutes later David's car pulled into the driveway of Casa Walsh. He picked up the sleeping Ruby from her car seat and grabbed the bags as he and Erin made their way to the front door. Brandon and Kelly were already waiting for them. Brandon took the bags while Kelly took the sleeping Ruby from him.

"Tell Donna we'll be thinking of her. We'll come with Ruby once the little guy is born." Kelly said giving her brother a hug.

"Will do." David said as he headed back to the car where Donna was waiting for him.

They watched as the car left the drive way before heading inside the house. Brandon headed upstairs followed by Kelly with sleeping Ruby and Erin. He dropped Erin's bag in the guest room, wishing her good night, while Kelly headed into the master bedroom and tucked Ruby into the pack & play. Brandon stopped in the door watching his wife and god-daughter, it were moments like this when it hurt the most.

"Hey!" Kelly said when she turned around and saw him standing there. Even without a word she knew what he was thinking. He was always there for her through everything, but deep inside he was hurting as much as she was the whole time. She walked to him kissing him softly. "Go to bed now, it's just 4 am. I'm going to check on Erin and come back to you."

"Alright." He said wrapping his arm around her waist and kissing her again. "It's a good thing that it's Sunday."

"A very good thing, although Ruby will probably have us up from the wee hours." Kelly smiled freeing herself from his embrace and heading to the guest room. She saw that the lights were still on so she peeked her head inside.

"Can't sleep?" Kelly asked sitting on the edge of the bed next to Erin. Erin just shook her head looking at her hands in her lap.

"What's wrong Erin?" Kelly placed a finger under her chin making her look at her.

"It's mom." Erin said quietly. "She's drinking…"

Kelly closed her eyes, images that she tried to forget for so long running through her head again. She hated that she had to go through that, she hated even more that her sister had to go through the very same thing years later. "How long is this going on?" Kelly asked quietly.

"Around a month,. I was looking for you, but you were away, so I stayed with David and Donna for the last week. I didn't know what to do…" Erin said with tears in her eyes.

Kelly pulled her close rubbing her back and letting her cry. "It'll be okay, Erin. You can stay here as long as you want to."

"What are we going to do with mom?" Erin asked.

"I'll try talk to her as soon as possible." Kelly said not really looking forward to it. "We will see after that, but probably the only way to go is rehab." Kelly said knowing that it's easier said than done. "It's not the first time she's in this mess."

"I didn't know that…" Erin said quietly wiping her tears away.

"There was no reason to talk about it, it was a long time ago and I was hoping she won't make the same mistake twice." Kelly said rubbing her back. "You should get some sleep, we'll have to head to the hospital once the little guy makes it here."

Erin smiled. "That's true. Good night Kelly."

"Night, Erin." Kelly said standing up and heading out of the room and into their bedroom. She smiled when she saw both Brandon and Ruby sound asleep. Slipping back under the warm sheets she snuggled to Brandon, she needed to feel him close to her. There were millions of different thoughts running through her head as she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

_So this is the last chapter where I used parts from the original story. As you can see I decided to keep the Jackie/Erin/Kelly subplot from the original story since I'll need it later on. Now that B/K are back in Los Angeles things will start to move on. Thanks to everyone who reads this story and reviews will make me happy :)_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Before they could realize it a week passed since Ryan John Silver was born on a late Sunday morning. Ruby stayed with them for two more days, until Donna and Ryan were released from hospital. With toddler in house first and later returning to work, Kelly had no time to go and talk to her mother during the week, besides she was not exactly in hurry to do so.

Kelly could hear Brandon and Erin chatting in the kitchen when she walked down the stairs on the Monday morning. She has decided the day before, that today was the day to do the inevitable…not really looking forward to it her mood was reflecting that, on top of that she was not feeling so well.

"Morning." Kelly said as she entered the kitchen.

"Morning, Kelly." Erin said finishing her bowl of cereal.

"Sleep well?" Kelly asked as she kissed Brandon's cheek and headed to pour herself a cup of coffee.

"Yeah. I'm going to pack my bag so we can leave shortly." Erin said putting the bowl into the dishwasher.

"Good, we can be on time at least once a week." Kelly said joining Brandon at the table watching Erin as she left the room.

Brandon watched her for a bit as she sipped her coffee. "Are you going to eat something or is this your breakfast?"

"I'm not hungry." Kelly lied, the truth was that just the thought of food made her nauseous. Her nerves were certainly getting the best out of her.

"You're going there today, aren't you?" Brandon asked playing with his cup.

"Yeah, I'll stop there after work." Kelly replied warily. The situation with her mom was a sore point between her and Brandon. While he didn't mind having Erin over, his and Kelly's opinions about how to solve the situation differed tremendously.

"I still don't like the idea of you going there alone." Brandon stated, he was not looking for a fight and he knew that once Kelly decided to do something there was no stopping, but still. "I can go there with you, Kel." He said looking at her.

Now it was Kelly who was playing with her cup, in order to avoid looking at him. "We've already talked about this, I think we agreed that it'll be for the best if I just go there alone."

"No, we didn't agree. That's just what you said you'll do." Brandon sighed.

"She'll think we've ganged up on her. Besides you've never seen her like that, I did." Kelly shot back.

"Now what's that for a reason? You may have seen her like that, but that was god knows how many years ago, the truth is you have no idea what you'll find there." Brandon said standing up and heading to the dishwasher now regretting that he even started the discussion. Whenever Jackie was brought up it ended in a fight.

"Great. Just make me the bad guy here, that's exactly what I need." Kelly stood up too and poured the coffee in the sink, she didn't feel like drinking it anymore, besides it made her nausea just worse.

"Care to tell me what exactly do you need Kel? You don't want me there, you don't want to talk about it…so what exactly do you need?" Brandon asked looking at Kelly's back.

"Just drop it." Kelly said quietly, before she turned around and ran out of the kitchen.

Brandon looked stunned, having absolutely no idea what was going on. She made it clear what she wanted, but he still headed upstairs. He found her in the bathroom kneeling over the toilet holding her hair with one hand while grabbing her porcelain friend with the other one. He kneeled next to her holding her hair, rubbing her back and letting her grab the bowl with both hands. When she finished he handed her a towel to wipe her mouth.

"Thanks!" Kelly mouthed before she stood up and went to rinse her mouth.

"Are you okay?" Brandon asked carefully.

"Yeah, must be the nerves." Kelly said quietly.

Brandon felt guilty for pushing her so far. Between all their arguing he never really considered how difficult this was for her. "I'm sorry, Kel." He kissed her forehead. "Call me when you get out of there, okay?"

"I will." Kelly smiled weakly.

"I have to head to work and you and Erin should do probably the same." Brandon smiled.

"Yeah, I'll brush my teeth and we will leave too."

"Bye!" Brandon kissed her forehead one more time before he left the bathroom leaving her alone. Kelly quickly pulled herself together and a few minutes later she and Erin left the house too.

* * *

Brandon walked into the office of Beverly Beat. Since they returned from Europe he was trying to reach Steve but so far with no success, he was not returning his calls or texts. Steve did not even come to hospital to visit Donna and the baby. Brandon was surprised when he saw that Steve's table was empty and Janet was the only one in the office.

"Hi Janet!" Brandon said as he walked inside.

"Brandon!" Janet looked up from her computer surprised to see him there.

"How are you doing?" Brandon asked giving her a hug.

"Good." Janet tried to fake a smile.

"I see." Brandon said quietly, not going to dig into it, the fight with Kelly was enough for one day.

"You're looking for Steve, right?" Janet asked while returning back to her table.

"Yes. I was trying to reach him, but he's not answering." He told her truthfully.

"I guess he told you about Noah." Janet looked at him. Seeing him nod she continued. "He is still in Paris, waiting for the results of paternity test. The last hearing should be in three days, if the paternity test confirms that he's the father they'll return home shortly." She said quietly.

Brandon looked at her surprised, he didn't even consider it might take so much time until Steve would be allowed to take Noah home. "Are you and the kids okay?"

"We're doing good. The kids don't know anything so far, I just told them that Steve had to fly to Paris. He calls them regularly." Janet said leaving out any details about the discussion that probably happened between her and Steve.

"Okay, if you need anything, just let me know." Brandon said.

"Thanks, Brandon! I'll keep that in mind. I heard you and Kelly also have a lot going on."

"Yes, having teenager in house is certainly interesting." Brandon smiled.

"I'm so not looking forward to that age." Janet laughed.

"It isn't that bad, despite everything else that's going on, Erin is a good kid."

"Yes, she's lucky to have Kelly, David, you and Donna." Janet smiled.

"And Steve is lucky to have you." Brandon commented.

"He might not think so right now." Janet said quietly. "As you can guess we're in an odd place now."

"It will get better." Brandon reassured her.

"It has to, because it can't get much worse." Janet smiled sadly. "It's just an odd situation, neither of us knows what to expect from the other one and how Noah will change everything. I still love Steve, it's just…I don't know if I can trust him anymore."

"I'm not going to say I know how you feel, because I don't. I just want to say one thing, I've known Steve for 16 years and believe me, if he knew about Noah from the beginning, he'd have told you. He matured a lot with you, I'm not afraid to say you made him a better person and he's probably right now as scared as you are." Brandon said truthfully.

"You're right, I never doubted the fact that he did not know about him. I guess I'm just mad that this happened to us and in a weird way it's his fault." Janet smiled slightly.

"Yes, you got to blame it on someone." Brandon grinned.

"Thanks Brandon!" Janet stood up giving him a hug.

"I didn't do anything." Brandon said surprised.

"You did more than you know." Janet laughed as they pulled apart.

* * *

Kelly killed the car engine in the driveway of Jackie's house. The whole day she was dreading this moment, but she knew it had to be done, it was already overdue. She got out of the car and headed to the door. She knocked on the door and when no one replied rang the bell. It looked that the house was empty, she tried the door knob and it wasn't locked. Walking inside the smell of alcohol made her stomach turn. "Mom?!" She called out peeking inside the kitchen and later living room, the empty bottles on the living room table and floor being a silent proof of what was going on in there. Not seeing her mother anywhere she headed upstairs. Sure enough she found her in her bedroom sprawled on her bed, as the rest of the house also the bedroom smelled after alcohol.

"Mom?!" Kelly said loudly again, shaking Jackie's shoulder. Jackie shuffled and unwillingly opened her eyes grabbing her head almost immediately. It was clear, she was having hangover.

"I'll wait downstairs and make you some coffee. We need to talk." Kelly said leaving her mom alone to gather herself. She headed downstairs and opened the window in kitchen before she filled the coffeemaker, the alcohol smell in the house was really unbearable. It took Jackie nearly ten minutes to come downstairs.

"I thought you won't make it." Kelly said sharply, she was not going to sweet talk her.

"What do you want from me Kelly?" Jackie asked pouring herself a cup of coffee and sitting on one of the bar stools.

"You know what I want." Kelly looked at her sternly. "Stop this."

"Stop what?" Jackie asked trying to play dumb.

"Drinking, mom. Stop drinking, before it gets too far or let's say any further than it already got." Kelly said pointing to the trash can full of empty bottles.

Jackie ran her fingers through her short blond hair. "Why?"

"You really need a reason for that?" Kelly asked, her mother was really being unbelievable. "Maybe because if you don't stop it'll kill you at some point, maybe because of your teenage daughter who is scared as hell about what's going on….just to name a few."

"I know where my limit is, and Erin is fine." Jackie said dryly.

"How exactly do you know that Erin is fine? You haven't seen her in weeks."

"She's staying with you, isn't she? She has to be fine, she does not need me around." Jackie stood up and placed the cup in the sink taking an unopened bottle of vodka from the cupboard and pouring herself a drink. "I guess you don't want one." She said sitting back on the bar stool and lighting a cigarette.

Kelly's stomach turned again but the distant idea of how the toilet probably looked like made her contain herself from heading there to throw up. "Erin still needs you and so do I." She looked directly at Jackie.

Jackie laughed. "No you don't, you have Brandon and the life you dreamed about. You don't need me, and Erin? She will be better off with you. Just let me be, Kelly. I'm enjoying myself here." She took a gulp from her glass.

Kelly knew there was no point in further reasoning with her, like Kelly her mother was strong-willed and once she decided to do something, there was no way to change her mind. This was a lost battle, she sighed. "If you decide to come back to your senses just give me a call." Kelly grabbed her purse heading out of the room.

"I don't need your help, I don't need anyone's help." Jackie called after her making Kelly stop in the doorway for a moment. Shaking her head she headed outside shutting the door behind her. She took a deep breath when she was out on the fresh air in hope that her stomach will calm down once there was no smell of alcohol and cigarettes around. She got in her car and quickly dialed Brandon's number telling him all about the disaster that just went on inside, after a short talk Kelly closed her cell and threw it in the passenger seat. Whatever just went on with her mother she, Brandon and Erin needed something to eat and their fridge was helplessly empty…grocery shopping was the next program of the day.

Minutes later she walked mindlessly through the shop in their neighborhood throwing random things they needed into the basket. She was just cruising through the rows, when her eyes fell on the rack with pregnancy tests. Her eyes grew big when the realization hit her. How could she be so dumb? She quickly did the math in her head once again coming to the same result. Linking all the clues together, she suddenly felt lightheaded….it was impossible, Andrea said there was no way. She reached for one of the tests, but her hand fell quickly. She was not ready to go through another disappointment and definitely not now with everything else that was going on. But the tiny voice in her head was telling her that all the symptoms were there, they never were before. She reached out again and threw one of the tests into the basket hurrying to the cashiers…whatever the result was going to be she needed to know…

Kelly was lucky that there were no police patrols on her way home from the store as she made it there in record time. She dropped the bags in the kitchen, quickly grabbing the test and heading to the bathroom upstairs. The house was empty, Brandon was still at work and Erin was at her friend's house studying for math test. She felt her body tremble. If the test comes back negative with a bit of luck she'll have time to collect herself until either of the two makes it home. Once in the bathroom she turned the box to read the instructions on the back side, she's done this so many times before but yet felt the need to read them one more time before unpacking the test and taking out the sleek stick.

When everything was done, she leaned against the wall by windows, looking at the stick resting on the counter. This was going to be the longest five minutes of her life. She hated to get her hopes up once again, because she knew how it always ended….with tears and broken dreams, why should this time be any different? Right at this moment she regretted that she even bought the test, putting herself through the same hell as in the last two and half years. She quickly glanced at her watch seeing that the five minutes were up, she took a deep breath and crossed the short distance to the counter. Looking at the test she had to grab the counter as she felt the room spinning, it was there….the second line was there dark and clear. She choked when she felt the tears pouring down her cheeks. For once they were there for a good reason.

"Kel?" She heard Brandon's voice from the doorway. She turned around slowly, her make up completely fuzzy and new tears uncontrollably streaming down her cheeks. His eyes fell on the slender object in her hand, recognizing it immediately.

Although her vision was blurry she figured out what he was looking at. "It's positive." Kelly said quietly. "I'm…I'm pregnant." She said it out loud for the first time, still unable to believe it herself.

Brandon stood there stunned for a moment, tears forming in his eyes too. He quickly crossed the short distance between them taking her in his arms. Like Kelly he could not believe it, after months and months of trying it just happened. In a moment when they gave up and were not trying at all. He kissed her lovingly before he rested his forehead against hers, trying to wipe all of her tears away. "I love you so much, Kel."

"I love you too." Kelly replied her voice husky.

"Now, I know why you were so testy and what was the deal with throwing up in the morning." Brandon smiled softly.

"I should probably get used to the idea of spending a lot of time with my porcelain friend." Kelly chuckled.

"Hopefully it'll pass quickly." Brandon smiled kissing her again while running his hands down her sides to her flat stomach.

"I can't believe that after everything we went through I haven't noticed it earlier. I'm a week late." Kelly shook her head still trying to process that this was really happening.

"By that calculation we'll be having a honeymoon baby. How fitting." Brandon chuckled.

"Yes." Kelly smiled placing her hands on top of Brandon's. "I should call Andrea and schedule an appointment, I don't think I'll be able to relax until she confirms it."

"That's a good idea, Kel." Brandon said wrapping his arms around her. He knew that there was still a long road ahead of them, but for today they were just going to enjoy the feeling that the first step was made….nothing was going to take away the joy they were feeling that day.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"Dr. Zuckerman, I have the results of Kelly Walsh's pregnancy test." The nurse said handing Andrea the paper.

"Thank you, Gabby!" Andrea read through the results carefully. Looking at the hCG levels there was no doubt that Kelly was indeed pregnant. Being her doctor she was more than aware that conceiving this baby was a miracle, but she wouldn't want anyone other than her friends to prove her wrong with her diagnoses. She headed towards the door of her office where she knew Brandon & Kelly were anxiously waiting.

Brandon looked up as he saw Andrea entering the office again. "So Chief, what's the result?" He asked impatiently, holding Kelly's hand in his. Although the home pregnancy test was clear, there was something more definite hearing it from the doctor.

"Congrats are in order to you two." She smiled at her friends. "hCG levels don't lie, and Kelly's are exemplary. I'd suggest we schedule the first appointment in two weeks, we'll do ultrasound then. "

Kelly and Brandon both nodded their heads. "I want you to take it easy, Kelly. Rest as much as you can, no stress."

"I'll take care of that." Brandon rubbed Kelly's hand with his thumb.

"Everything looks good so far, but we'll be better safe than sorry." Andrea smiled at her friends.

"Thank you Andrea!" Kelly said standing up and hugging her.

"I didn't do anything, Kelly. Sometimes our bodies do tricks on us, we try everything and it's not working. Your body just decided that now was the right time. Believe me, I wouldn't want anyone else to prove me wrong than you two." Andrea said.

"I guess the whole _"don't try too hard approach"_ did the trick in the end." Brandon said hugging Andrea too. "We'll see you in two weeks." He took Kelly's hand as they left the office. Walking down the hallways of hospital they both couldn't help but smile all the time.

"Do you realize this is the first time we came out of there smiling?" Brandon asked.

"There's a reason for it." Kelly giggled before she stopped and her expression turned back to serious. "Bran, I know that Andrea said that everything looks good, but…"

"But what, Kel?" Brandon asked looking at her expectantly.

"How about we wait and don't tell anyone until I'm out of first trimester?" Kelly asked cautiously.

He knew why she wanted to be cautious, it was not the first time they were expecting a baby. "You shouldn't think about it. It's going to be alright." Brandon caressed her cheek.

"I try not to, but it's still somewhere in the back of my mind. I can't help it." Kelly looked at him almost pleadingly.

As much as Brandon wanted to climb on the nearest hill and scream the news so everyone could hear it, she was probably right. After what they went through neither of them was ready to explain if something went wrong. "Alright." Brandon smiled reassuringly. "We will keep the pregnancy our sweet little secret for now." He kissed her quickly.

"Thank you!" Kelly mouthed. "After all, it's sweet, and still little."

"Now, how about I take you two for a lunch?" Brandon asked as they headed to the elevators.

"Sounds good to me. In fact, I'm starving." Kelly smiled.

"Lunch is it then. I have to feed you two." Brandon laughed taking her hand into his as they entered the elevator.

* * *

After the lunch with Kelly and dropping her back at work, Brandon returned to his office at LA Times. The last four days between the positive pregnancy test and today's appointment were full of suspense. He was glad that now everything was confirmed and they could breathe a bit easier. Although as he knew Kelly, she'll soon find something else to stress over. Smiling, he returned to the article he was working on before he left for Kelly's appointment. He was more than aware that his boss was expecting to see it on his table in two hours. He managed to write a few sentences before there was a knock on his door and a blond head he knew all too well popped it.

"Is it safe in here? Nothing going on with the secretary?" Steve walked in a huge grin on his face.

"Sanders! What do you think of me? I'm a happily married man." Brandon grinned as he stood up and the two of them shook their hands. It was good to see that despite everything that was going on, Steve was still able to joke around.

"I'm now officially father of three." Steve said quietly after the two of them sat down.

"Congrats, I guess!" Brandon was not really sure what to say, it still felt surreal not only to him, but probably to everyone involved. "How did it go?"

"It was long, and emotionally draining for everyone. The results of paternity test came back on Tuesday, confirming me as his father. After that it was a quick ride. I got the custody on the same day and we returned home on Wednesday." Steve said looking down at his hands. "You know what hurts the most?" He looked up at Brandon who remained silent. "Noah, knew the whole time about me. She was showing him my pictures telling him all about me…. And all this time I had absolutely no clue, she never told me I had a son."

It was a rare occasion to see Steve hurt. Brandon knew there were many unanswered questions and he'll never received the answer for them, because the only person who could give those answers was not among the living. Brandon rested his hand on Steve's back, just with a simple gesture letting him know that he was there for him.

"I'm sorry, man. I'm crying here like a baby." Steve said wiping away the tears that formed in his eyes.

"You don't have to be the class clown all the time." Brandon smiled getting a slight smirk from Steve in return. "I met Janet on Monday and I'll tell you the same thing I told her. I'm not going to pretend that I know how you feel, because I don't, but when you need me, I'll be there for you."

"Thanks, Bran. You know, Kelly is right, you just always know what to say." Steve chuckled.

"Boy, do I hate it when she's right." Brandon joked. "I know it's still too early to say, but how is everyone settling in?"

"Let me see, Janet is still mad, but so far she tolerates me and Noah which is a good sign I guess. Madeline, being the little sunshine she is, really took up to him quickly, she tries to include Noah into everything although it's not always easy. Jake is still too little to understand what's going on, he just kind of observes the situation." Steve ran his fingers through his short hair nervously. "That leaves us with Noah. Sometimes I'd like to know what exactly is going on in his head, because I really can't imagine. He is completely different from the other two, quiet, a bit of a loner, sometimes you won't even notice he's in the same room as you. I don't know if it is really his personality or just the result of everything he has been through in the last month. But I'm fearing the later one is the case."

"That really wouldn't be surprising. In a month he lost his mother and moved in with a new family in a new country." Brandon commented.

"Add a few weeks stay in a foster home into the mix and there is no doubt the later one is the case. I'm already working on a meeting with child psychologist for him." Steve sighed.

"You know, if it doesn't work out, I'm sure Kelly wouldn't mind working with him for a bit." Brandon offered.

"I was somehow counting on that, if everything else fails or it takes too long. But I heard you two have your fair share of family drama going on." Steve smiled slightly.

"And you used to say we were a boring couple." Brandon chuckled. "Yes, we do have a bit of family drama going on too. Erin is living with us, for now just temporary. Jackie sadly rediscovered her love for alcohol. She has apparently no intentions to give it up any time soon."

Steve just shook his head. "The situation with my parents was never ideal, but I can't help but wonder how Kelly and now Erin survived in such a messed up family."

"I keep wondering about that myself." Brandon wrinkled his forehead.

"Are you two going to ask for custody?" Steve asked partly glad that the subject changed.

"I kind of let that idea slip in front of Kelly. But she is not in favor of any legal steps right now, she wants to give Jackie a chance to collect herself. We called it a truce for now." Brandon hinted on the ongoing disagreements with Kelly when it came to her family situation.

"I guess you're in a tough position too." Steve said.

"I think so, it's never good to be in the middle of Taylor drama. The good thing is, it can only get better." Brandon grinned.

"That's my man, always looking at things from the bright side." Steve laughed. "It was nice to talk to you, but it's time to leave you to your work. I have to go to pick Janet and the kids up and we're heading to a dinner with my mother." Steve rolled his eyes.

"Oh, yeah…I have an article due in hour and half. I couldn't resist a little adrenaline rush today." Brandon grinned.

"You were always great in working under pressure." Steve laughed. "You know it's Madeline's birthday in two weeks, we'd love to have everyone over for barbeque. I'll call you with the date sometime next week."

"It'll be great to see everybody and meet the new son of yours." The two of them shook their hands again before Steve left his office and Brandon returned back to his article yet again. Now he really had to hurry up to meet the deadline.

* * *

Brandon woke up in the middle of the night. Noticing he was once again alone in bed he rubbed his eyes before he slipped out from under the warm sheets. It was the same deal as the last three nights, he knew exactly where he'll find her. Walking down the stairs he could see that the lights in the kitchen were on, as expected. Soon he saw also his wife sitting on one of the bar stools, playing with the glass full of icy water in front of her. "You know the baby won't be here for like 35 more weeks so you don't need to practice every night." He joked kissing the crown of her head.

"I couldn't sleep, so I came downstairs." Kelly said quietly.

"You should mention this to Andrea." Brandon sat on the bar stool next to her.

"I don't think it's pregnancy related, there's just a lot on my mind lately." Kelly looked at the glass in front of her.

"Well I'm listening if you want to talk." Brandon rested his arms against the counter looking at her.

"I don't want to fight, Bran."

"Good because I'm not looking for a fight either." He placed a finger under her chin making her look at him. "Kel, holding everything inside so we don't get in a fight is not a solution. Our options may differ, but I'm here for you and in the end we will work everything out, together. Just as we did before."

"I just can't stop thinking about my mom." Kelly sighed. "I should have done more, not just leave so easily."

"Your mother is an adult, Kelly. She made her choice and she'll have to live with the consequences. You went there offered your help and she refused it. I don't think you could have done more, you can't force her to go to rehab. She, needs to be willing to change her situation in first place, until then there is nothing more you can do."

"What if she never changes her mind? What if she goes too far." Kelly looked at him now with tears in her eyes.

"You'll have to accept that." Brandon said quietly.

"I can't. I already lost my father due to his lack of interest, I can't let my mom go. Not now." The tears were now streaming down her cheeks.

Brandon took her hand into his. "Kel, maybe you're holding onto something that isn't there."

Kelly felt even more tears on her cheeks. She knew that Brandon hit the nail on its head. The relationship between her and her parents was like a roller coaster ride. While her father vanished from her life immediately after her wedding to Brandon, she had a good relationship with her mother up until a few months back. Jackie has never been an easy person to deal with, but they somehow managed and she couldn't figure out what went wrong. She wiped her tears away. "What are we going to do with Erin?"

"Have you talked with her about custody arrangements?" Brandon asked.

"No, not yet." Kelly shook her head.

"I don't want to go back to my mom." They both turned around at the same time hearing Erin's voice from the doorway wondering how long she's been standing there.

"There's no way we'd send you back there, Erin." Kelly said wiping the rest of her tears away and looking at Brandon for support.

"I want to stay here." Erin said still with a slight panic in her eyes.

"That's pretty much what we needed to hear." Brandon said looking at Erin first before looking at Kelly who nodded in agreement. "Your mom still has sole custody of you, which basically means that even though you are living here, she's fully responsible for you."

"With the way things look now, you'll be probably staying with us for much longer than a few weeks." Kelly said quietly. "So we will need to clear a few legal things."

"Do I need to go to talk with the judge, as when my parents were divorcing?" Erin asked.

"Very likely, yes." Brandon confirmed.

"Alright, I can do that. As long as I can stay here." Erin smiled softly for the first time since she came downstairs. She walked to them giving both Kelly and Brandon a hug. "Thank you!" She mouthed.

"Now head to your bed, Missy. It's 2 am." Kelly smiled.

"I'm on my way. Good night!" Erin called after them as she left the kitchen.

"One problem partly solved." Brandon grinned, giving Kelly a quick kiss before he stood up and headed to the fridge.

"Isn't it too late for a midnight dinner?" Kelly smiled sipping her water.

"Yes, it is." Brandon grinned as he took the milk out of the fridge. "But I have to prepare my beautiful wife some magic potion so she can sleep peacefully."

"Magic potion?" Kelly giggled. "I wonder what's that going to be."

"Warm milk with honey. The oldest medicine." Brandon winked at her. "And I still think you should mention it to Andrea, just in case." He said kissing the tip of her nose as he placed the cup in front of her.

"I will mention it if it'll make you happy." Kelly grinned before she drank the milk.

"I can think of a few other things that'd make me happy." Brandon furred his brows.

"You know even the oldest medicine needs some time to kick in. It's 2 am, tomorrow is Saturday, we're both up..." Kelly laughed.

"I like your thinking." Brandon laughed too as he took her hand helping her up and leading her upstairs to their bedroom.

* * *

_A/N: I'd like to thank you for your reviews once again. :) I admit this is a slow chapter, but I wanted to somehow finish the Steve/Janet storyline I had going on, although it's not completely finished yet...I kept the doors open if I decide to throw a few twists and turns in their way. I also first intended to dig deeper in the Jackie/Erin storyline, but in the end decided to keep the drama for the next chapter._


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N: Once again I have to say, thank you for your reviews. It's nice to know that someone enjoys the story. :) This chapter took much longer that I thought it would, I'm sorry about that, but simply sometimes life get in a way of writing. I hope you'll like it._

* * *

**Chapter 8**

It was a lazy Sunday afternoon at Casa Walsh. After lunch Erin went upstairs to finish her homework, while Brandon and Kelly snuggled on the sofa watching some old movie. Well, in fact it was just Brandon watching as Kelly fell asleep after about 10 minutes. It was no surprise since she barely slept through the night once again. Brandon was not sure how she was going to manage it during the week up until her next appointment with Andrea, this was going on just for the last five days and she was already at the point of exhaustion. He just hoped that Andrea would be able to prescribe her something even though as Kelly claimed, it was possibly not pregnancy related, but had more to do with the situation with her mother.

Watching over his sleeping wife it took Brandon a few minutes to notice the movie ended. He flipped through the channels but found nothing worth watching so he turned the TV off. He moved from the sofa carefully, trying to not wake Kelly up. As he accomplished his mission she stirred and turned but continued to sleep. He smiled at her one more time before heading upstairs.

"Brandon?" He heard Erin's voice just as he was about to walk into the master bedroom.

"Yes?" Brandon turned around to see her leaning against the door frame of the former guest bedroom.

"Is Kelly alright?" Erin asked curiously.

"Yes, she's fine. Why wouldn't she be?" Brandon shrugged.

"Well, let me see. For the past week you're trying to wrap her in cotton wool, which drives her crazy in return. She's been throwing up at least twice a day, she is constantly tired, does not sleep during the night. Oh and let's not forget the mood swings. Yup, sounds totally fine to me." Erin smirked.

"Oh boy, I'm in trouble." Brandon chuckled running his fingers through his hair. "When did you become so smart?"

"I've always been." Erin grinned. "So is she…?"

"Your sister will kill me if she finds out I told you." Brandon laughed trying to contain his excitement. "Yes, she is. It's still pretty early, the baby is due in January." He confirmed.

Erin chuckled before she hugged him. "Congrats, Brandon! Don't worry, I'll play dumb until Kelly decides to tell me. Technically I found out on my own and you just confirmed it." She offered.

"Thanks!" Brandon smiled as the two pull apart.

"I don't get it anyway. Why does she want to keep this a secret?" Erin asked shaking her head.

"Getting pregnant is not always as easy as it seems." Brandon commented, deciding to refrain from any further details as he felt uneasy to discuss Kelly's diagnoses with anyone, not even with her sister. It was up to Kelly to decide if she ever wanted to talk with her sister about her issues.

Luckily for him Erin just smiled and did not ask any further. "I'm so happy for you two. This will be one lucky baby with Kelly and you as parents." She hugged him one more time before she returned to her room and left Brandon in the hallway with a smile on his lips.

* * *

The next days in the Walsh family were pretty challenging for everyone. Kelly was still having trouble with her sleep but the milk with honey usually helped to sooth her up. She managed to get a few hours of sleep during the night and usually a few more hours during a nap after returning from work. She was now eight weeks pregnant and finally relaxed a bit after she saw her baby and heard the heartbeat during the ultrasound. Erin did as she promised Brandon. She played dumb in front of Kelly even though it took all her strength. As Brandon, she was really excited about her new nephew or niece that Kelly was carrying under her hearth and even more so after Brandon showed her the pictures from ultrasound. Seeing the little peanut, everything felt suddenly so real for all of them.

After the night talk with Erin, Kelly and Brandon met with a lawyer to discuss all the legal steps. It turned out that stripping Jackie of her parenting rights might not be the biggest problem, there was another obstacle on the road, Mel Silver. Even though Erin's contact with her father in the last years was nonexistent, if he applied for custody everything could turn into a nasty battle. They were not sure if Erin was ready to go through that right now, so they refrained from any legal steps, hoping that Mel won't found out about Jackie's issues. What were the chances anyway? Jackie & Mel haven't been in contact since their divorce.

"So what time is Maddy's birthday party?" Erin asked walking into the kitchen where Brandon and Kelly were just finishing their breakfast.

"3 pm." Kelly replied leaning back in her chair. "I can't believe she's already seven years old." She shook her head.

"Time flies." Brandon grinned standing up from his chair and giving Kelly a quick kiss before he started cleaning the table.

"It sure does." Kelly smiled sweetly before she stood up and helped him.

"I'll get it." Erin said as she heard the phone. "Kel, it's for you." She said turning around and covering the receiver with her hand.

Brandon looked at Kelly and she shrugged heading to take the phone so he returned to placing the dishes in the dishwasher. He turned back around when he heard Kelly taking a sharp breath tears streaming down her cheeks. "Kel, what's wrong?" He hurried to her.

"It was hospital." She said quietly. "They brought mom in an hour ago, she…she mixed alcohol with pills."

"Is she alright." He asked wrapping his arms around her carefully.

"I don't know. They won't tell me more over the phone." She buried her face into his chest her body trembling.

Brandon rubbed her back trying to sooth her as his eyes wandered to Erin who was standing there watching them speechless as she heard everything. "We have to go to the hospital, Kel." He said his eyes still glued to Erin.

"I want to go too." Erin said quietly.

"No!" Kelly pulled away from Brandon's embrace and looked at her sister.

"Kel, let her go." Brandon moved to her again and let his hand run down her back. "It's Erin's mother too."

Kelly gulped looking down at her hands. "Alright." She said quietly, as much as she wanted to protect her sister, Brandon was right. They quickly grabbed their jackets and headed out of the house.

An hour later they were sitting in the waiting room of Cedars Sinai waiting for Jackie's doctor to come back to them with any information. Kelly was resting her head on Brandon's shoulder, her eyes closed. He knew she was not asleep just trying to mask the tears that were building in her eyes constantly. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze letting her know that he was there for her. Erin was sitting on his other side, her knees pulled under her chin, she haven't said a word since they left the house. It was obvious that even though she hurt them, both daughters still cared about Jackie and were dealing with everything in their own way.

"Are you here for Jackie Taylor?" A young dark-haired doctor asked.

Kelly opened her eyes quickly and wiped the tears away. "Yes, we're her daughters. How is she doing?"

"She's stabilized now. We pumped her stomach, but the pills were already in her system. The long-term use of alcohol is also taking its tool." He said sadly.

Kelly felt Brandon's hand on the small of her back. "Is she going to be alright?"

"I'm not going to lie to you, it does not look good. Her liver is damaged and right now we don't know if and how much better it will get." The doctor said.

Kelly nodded quietly. "Can we see her?"

"I'd recommend to give her a few days time to recuperate herself before you visit her. There is a long road ahead of your mother if she's willing to take it and she'll need your support all along, but first she needs to sort everything and make the right decisions for herself."

"Alright. We will do what's right for her." Kelly sighed looking at Brandon and Erin who barely nodded in agreement. "Thank you, doc." She shook his hand.

Soon Brandon was guiding both of the girls out from hospital and into his car. The ride was a quiet one, no one of them wanting to talk about what just happened. Both Kelly and Erin are staring out of the window lost in their thoughts while Brandon navigated the car through the streets of Los Angeles. "We can call Steve and tell him we're not coming. They will understand." Brandon offered knowing that neither of them was in mood to celebrate.

Kelly shook her head. "We have to go there, Madeline is my god-daughter and they are our friends. Maybe it's exactly what we need today." She smiled weakly.

"That's my girl." Brandon smiled giving her knee a gentle squeeze.

* * *

When Brandon, Kelly and Erin arrive at the Sander's house everyone was already there. Donna and David with their two children as well as Andrea with her daughter Hannah and boyfriend Jeremy. After the meet and greet Hannah and Erin moved into a quiet corner of the garden, the little kids playing together while the men helped Steve with the food. Kelly and Donna with Ryan are sitting on the lounge chairs outside chatting.

"Are you okay, Kel?" Donna asked stroking her sleeping baby boy's back.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Kelly smiled trying to look convincing.

"Right." Donna smiled knowing that Kelly is lying.

"Okay, I'm not." Kelly said playing with the drink in her hand.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Donna asked.

Kelly took a deep breath before she started talking quietly so only Donna could hear her. "Jackie was admitted to hospital this morning. She mixed alcohol with some pills."

"I'm sorry, Kel." Donna said giving Kelly's hand a squeeze.

"I just can't help feeling like it's my fault. I should have stopped her." Kelly looked at her, her eyes sad and tired.

"Kel, you didn't do anything wrong. She's an adult and made this choice for herself."

Kelly smiled weekly. "That's exactly what Brandon told me days ago."

"See, he's right. You should not beat yourself up. It isn't your fault." Donna said reassuringly.

"It's probably, seeing the impact this all has on Erin makes me feel guilty. She shouldn't have seen her mother like that." Kelly continued her rambling.

"No she shouldn't. No one should. But there is nothing else you could do. In fact you're doing the right thing. Giving Erin a home and stability. She is lucky to have you." Donna smiled watching Erin who was goofing around with her niece.

"She's a great kid. We were thinking of asking for custody, but the question what Mel will do remains open. They were not in contact for the last few years, but he's still her father." Kelly said.

"And you think, he might mess up things even more." Donna stated looking at Kelly who nodded in reply. "I think you should go for it. He made a lot of wrong choices, but he won't do anything that would hurt Erin. I think it's already clear that Erin does not want to have anything to do with him. He won't push it."

"Are you still seeing him?" Kelly asked curiously.

"Yes, once a month or so. He's David's father and Ruby and Ryan's grandfather." Donna shrugged. "He'll be glad to know that Erin is in good hands." Donna looked at her.

"Thanks, Don!" Kelly smiled softly.

"That's what friends are for and we're basically family anyway." Donna grinned.

"True." Kelly laughed. "I'll be right back." Kelly said before she headed inside the house.

Brandon's gaze followed Kelly into the house. Finally everything was getting back on track when it again crashed in front of his eyes this morning. She has been quiet the whole time since the morning phone call from hospital and they really did not have any time alone to talk about it. So he was glad when he saw a smile on her lips before she headed inside. He took a sip of the beer and threw the empty can into a bin before David approached him.

"Can we talk for a bit?" He asked handing Brandon another can with beer.

"Sure." Brandon replied as the two of them moved to the side for a bit of privacy.

"Look Brandon, with everything that's going on with Jackie… I hope you won't be mad. I told my father." David looked at him waiting for his reaction.

Inside Brandon wanted to scream and hit his brother-in-law. Why would he do anything like that? Knowing his sister wanted nothing to do with her father. He just nodded acknowledging that he heard and understood.

David shifted uncomfortably. "I know you and Kelly don't like him very much. But he's not a bad person. He won't do anything that would hurt Erin."

Brandon nodded again waiting for David to get to the essence.

"He cares about Erin even though he screwed up badly with her. I should just tell you, if you and Kelly decide to pursue the custody he won't stand in a way." David finished.

"Thanks, David!" Brandon shook his hand, his opinion about Mel Silver rising up a notch.

"So, are you going to do it?" David asked curiously.

"I guess so. We were talking about it and even met with the lawyer. What you told me was just the last piece of puzzle that fitted right in." Brandon said taking a sip of his beer. "Jackie was admitted to hospital today, she nearly overdosed."

"It was bound to happen." David said quietly.

"Yeah, was a matter of time." Brandon commented.

"How are they handling it?" David asked referring to Kelly and Erin.

"It's still fresh…" Brandon said before they were interrupted by Andrea.

"Sorry to interrupt. Can you come with me Brandon?" She asked looking at him.

There was something about the way she said it, that switched him into panic mode. "What's going on?" He asked as they entered the house.

"It's Kelly." She said quietly leading him out of the front door. His heart skipped a beat when he saw Janet helping Kelly into their car.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

It was well after 9 pm when Kelly was finally released from the hospital. The bleeding that alarmed them earlier on has nearly stopped, the heartbeat was still there. As Andrea told them there was nothing more they could do, just wait. He hated waiting, they waited for years until it happened, and now they were waiting again hoping it won't slip between their fingers. Brandon occasionally glanced at Kelly while driving through the streets of Los Angeles. Her eyes were closed although it was obvious that she was not asleep. It's been a long day for both of them, first the news about Jackie, then Madeline's party that went so well until they had to leave prematurely, and finally hours in hospital fearing about their unborn child. He remembered how crushed they both were when Kelly lost their baby in college, he didn't even want to think how difficult it would be if she lost this one. "We're home, Kel." He said quietly as he pulled the car into the driveway of Casa Walsh and killed the engine.

She opened her eyes and slipped out of the car without a word. Wrapping her hands around her shoulders she walked towards the house noticing the lights in the living room were on, it was probably Erin. She completely forgot about her sister when they were leaving the Sander's. She cursed quietly, another thing on her list of fails for that day. Right before the main door Brandon catched up with her and opened the door letting them both in.

As expected Erin was waiting for them in the living room. "Is the baby alright?" She blurted out as soon as she saw Brandon and Kelly.

Kelly turned back giving Brandon a questioning look before she shook her head in disbelieve and headed upstairs.

"Yes, the baby is alright for now." Brandon said looking at Erin.

Erin bit her lip looking after Kelly who by now reached the top of the stairs. "I'm sorry, Brandon." She said quietly.

"It's okay, Erin. It was about to happen sooner or later." He smiled reassuringly.

"Hopefully, she won't kill you." Erin laughed softly.

Brandon grinned. "She wouldn't do that, I was exaggerating. But I fear it will be a wild ride tonight, she hasn't spoken a word since we left the hospital." Brandon said looking upstairs with a worried look on his face.

"That 's never a good thing with Kelly." Erin said patting Brandon's back.

"Yeah, tell me about it. I better head upstairs now, before she has more time to get pissed off. Good night, Erin." He said giving her one last look before heading towards the stairs.

"Good night, Brandon." Erin turned the light in the living room off and headed into the kitchen to grab something to drink. Deciding staying downstairs would be a smart thing for now.

Brandon opened the door to master bedroom, secretly hoping that Kelly will be asleep. He sighed softly when he saw her still completely dressed sitting on their bed, her legs pulled close and her head resting on her knees.

He closed the door behind him and moved to sit next to her. Kelly did not move one bit or acknowledged his presence in any other way. They sat there in silence, Brandon looking at Kelly unsure if he should let her be or push it. He sighed deciding for the second option. "What's going on Kel?" He asked resting his head back against the headboard.

"You told Erin?" She asked quietly.

"She figured it out by herself. She is living here with us, it was just a matter of time." He said turning his head to her seeing that she was now looking directly at him her cheeks stroked with tears. "I confirmed her assumptions." He admitted.

"Great. Despite agreeing that we won't tell anyone until I'm out of first trimester." Kelly laughed sarcastically.

"Lying is not exactly my strong point." Brandon commented trying to manage his temper. He knew there was more behind than just Erin knowing about the baby.

"Yeah, boy scouts don't lie." Kelly mumbled quietly.

Brandon sighed clasping his hands. "Alright, Kel. I made a mistake I told your sister and to make it even worse I showed her pictures from the ultrasound. She was excited by the way, the most excited I saw her in ages. Can we now please move to the core instead of beating around the bush? This isn't about me telling Erin that you're pregnant and we both know it." He looked at her.

Now it was Kelly's turn to rest her head again the headboard before speaking. Brandon was right, this wasn't about Erin, she wasn't even mad at him for telling her. She closed her eyes briefly trying to figure out how to verbalize her feelings. "Whatever I do it's wrong." She finally said quietly.

"What do you mean?" Brandon asked completely puzzled.

"I nearly lost our baby." She gulped looking down at her hands in her lap.

"You can't blame yourself for that." Brandon looked at her surprised still not understanding what was going on.

Kelly looked at him sadly. "Yes, I can. I stressed myself even though I knew I shouldn't. I knew I should put myself and the baby first and I didn't. What kind of mother I'm going to be? The baby isn't even here and I'm already putting his or her life in danger simply by making the wrong choices for both of us."

Brandon pulled her close to him wrapping his hands around her and letting her cry. "You are going to be a great mom, Kel. I can't think of a better mom for our baby." He smiled brushing her tears away and making her look at him. "You should stop blaming yourself for things you can't influence. With everything that's going on, it's just natural that you are stressed out. I know that the situation right now with your mom and Erin is far from ideal, but it's how it is. I know that you have many doubts about it, but there is nothing more you can or could do to make it any easier for them." Brandon ran his fingers through her hair trying to sooth her. "We should start concentrating on more positive things, like the little peanut in here." He said as his hand ran down her side and rested on her still flat stomach.

Kelly smiled softly and rested her hand on top of his. Brandon was right it was time to let all the insecurities go. She shifted her body up and leaned down kissing him softly before she cuddled close to him again resting her head on his shoulder. There were no words needed between the two of them.

"Before we left Madeline's party, I talked to David." Brandon started intertwining his fingers with hers. "He told Mel about Jackie."

"What did Mel say?" Kelly asked quietly waiting for him to continue.

"He is in favor of us getting custody of Erin. If we ask for it, he won't stand in the way." Brandon finished looking down at her.

"Really?" Kelly asked sitting up and looking at Brandon with a soft smile on her face.

Brandon nodded. "We should go for it."

Kelly wrapped her hands around his neck hugging him tightly. "Finally some good news." She said when they pulled apart. "He just raised a notch in my eyes." Kelly smiled.

"I was surprised too." Brandon told her truthfully playing with Kelly's hair as she made herself comfortable in his arms again.

"We should get some sleep." Kelly said tiredly. "After today's departure from Madeline's party, there will be some people having questions tomorrow and I suspect that our little secret won't be a secret anymore."

"Yeah, I expect Donna here by 10 am at latest." Brandon commented knowing their blond-haired friend would be the first one to ask.

"She will be on pins and needles until then." Kelly smiled absently before she changed the subject. "I'm too beaten up to even get undressed and ready for bed." She laughed.

"I'd help you with the undressing part, but we both know how me undressing you always ends and Andrea said that we can't. So sorry hun, but I'm not going to tempt the fate, you have to manage by yourself." Brandon grinned cheekily.

"You can still take a cold shower afterwards." Kelly giggled turning around to lay on her stomach.

"Geez, thanks Kel. Up until now I thought you loved me." Brandon laughed.

"Poor baby, come here." Kelly said inching upwards and giving him a loving kiss on his lips. "Better?" She asked, her face hovering over his.

"A bit." Brandon wrinkled his nose and rested his hand on the back of her head pulling her in for another one.

"You said you were not going to tempt the fate." Kelly said raising her eyebrows looking into his baby blue eyes.

"I changed my mind." Brandon chuckled. "The cold shower later on suddenly does not sound so bad." He said before his lips captured hers again.

* * *

Precise like a Swiss clock, Donna rang the doorbell at Casa Walsh the next day by 10 am. Kelly opened the door smiling. After Brandon washed all her insecurities away the previous night she was in a far better mood. "Hi Don!" She greeted her friend taking the capsule with Ryan from her.

"Hi Kel!" Donna said stunned by the greeting and her good mood.

She giggled when she saw the surprised look on her friends face. "We figured out you'd come today." She stated leading the surprised Donna who had Ruby in her arms to the living room. "Hey there little man." She talked to Ryan softly taking him out of his capsule which she placed on the coffee table before.

"I haven't seen you in such a good mood for weeks." Donna commented sitting on the sofa and letting Ruby explore the room.

"There's a reason for it." Kelly laughed sitting on the sofa next to her friend with Ryan still in her arms.

"And that would be?" Donna asked a cheeky smile on her lips.

"I thought you'd figure it out by now." Kelly couldn't help teasing her friend for a bit more.

"Well the clues are pretty straightforward." Donna said warily since she didn't know what happened after they left Madeline's party with Andrea.

"You'll be an aunt." Kelly grinned. "I'm pregnant, due in January."

"I knew it." Donna said hugging her friend. "Congrats, Kel!" She said a big smile on her face as the two of them pulled apart.

"Do I get a hug too?" Brandon chuckled from the door watching them with Ruby in his arms.

Donna grinned standing up and hugging him too. "Congrats, Brandon!"

"Thanks, Donna. I just came to tell you, that I'll take this little one out in the backyard so you two can catch up." Brandon smiled heading outside with Ruby leaving Kelly and Donna alone.

"Now I want all the details." Donna said excitedly joining Kelly on the sofa.

Kelly laughed at the eagerness of her friend. "It's a honeymoon baby, there's no doubt about that."

"So I was right, the two of you were having too much fun during the cruise." Donna commented.

"We did." Kelly smiled her cheeks turning pale pink. "I still have to pinch myself sometimes, you know we gave up before we left for the cruise and then it just happened out of nowhere. By the right of things I shouldn't be even able to get pregnant by myself so it is our little miracle." Kelly smiled resting her hand on her stomach.

"I'm so happy for you two. When did you find out?" Donna asked.

"After I visited Jackie, it just clicked. I realized I was late so I took a test and it came back positive. I cried like a baby, we both did." Kelly smiled absently remembering the day. "We didn't want to tell anyone until I'm out of first trimester, but after yesterday, probably pretty much everyone figured out what is going on."

"Is everything alright?" Donna asked carefully.

"Yes, it is for now. I was bleeding yesterday and it freaked me out. But it stopped later on and the baby looked perfectly fine on ultrasound, so we're hoping for the best. It just gave Brandon one more reason to wrap me up in the cotton wool." Kelly smiled rolling her eyes playfully.

"You can't really blame him." Donna said looking at her friend.

"No, I can't. We've been through a lot both and he just wants what he thinks is right for me and the baby. I know that, but it still drives me crazy from time to time." Kelly laughed.

"He is just awesome." Donna concluded.


	10. Chapter 10

_Wow, I never realized it took me so long to update this story. I hope I still have some readers out there and promise that I'll try to update it more often._

* * *

**Chapter 10**

Kelly stood in the bathroom looking at her reflection in the mirror. Her hand caressing the slight baby bump that she was finally spotting, but could still easily hide if she wanted. A soft absent smile on her face. The smile grew bigger when she felt two hands sliding around her waist and a soft kiss on her neck when they rested on her bare belly. "You've slightly popped out, Kel." Brandon said softly, his head resting on her shoulder.

"Yes, but it still looks like I had just one too many hamburgers." She giggled and rested her hands on top of his. "I can't wait to feel the baby move."

"It won't take too long now." Brandon exclaimed quietly, enjoying the feeling of having her in his arms, his hands caressing her belly. Six weeks have passed since the scare and the pregnancy was progressing beautifully. Without a doubt the past six weeks were turbulent for both of them, but the presence of their unborn child was what pulled them through it. Before welcoming a baby, Kelly and Brandon welcomed a teenager into their family. After a brief stay at hospital Jackie Taylor checked herself out of the rehab where she has been transferred and resumed her old ways. This time Kelly had no regrets. There was really nothing more that could have been done. Instead of looking back and giving Jackie a chance she'd probably blow up anyway, she and Brandon applied for Erin's custody. Mel Silver did as he promised and stayed out-of-the-way, which shortened the process, much to the joy of everyone involved.

"Did you talk to your parents?" Kelly asked interrupting the silence that filled the room.

Brandon nodded pulling down Kelly's shirt and covering her belly as he felt goose bumps on her skin. "They are expecting us tomorrow. Brenda, Dylan and Kyle will fly in a day later."

Kelly turned so they were now facing each other, slipping her hands around Brandon's waist. "It's kind of them that they invited Erin as well."

"She's a part of the family, Kel." Brandon said before kissing her forehead.

"Yes, she is…she's my sister. But it's still nice that your parents accept her as a part of their family well." Kelly smiled.

"My mum accepted you as her daughter years before you became her daughter-in-law." Brandon pointed out. "I guess it just comes naturally to them."

"Do you think they'll be mad, that we haven't told them about the baby?" Kelly asked playing with the hem of the shirt he was wearing. They made the decision few weeks back that instead of telling them over the phone, they'll tell them face to face.

"Nope, they'll be happy for us. But I can imagine a few more jokes about you and Bren due the same month." Brandon chuckled.

"Yes, like we all constantly call each other and coordinate our intimate life. Steve's sick ideas." Kelly laughed rolling her eyes playfully.

Their chatter was interrupted when Erin popped her head into the bedroom door. "Kel? Brandon? We should go, or we'll miss the flight." She called in the direction of the bathroom door.

"We're coming!" Brandon shouted back before kissing Kelly quickly. "When did she became so bossy?"

"I've no idea." Kelly grinned.

"Let's go Mrs. Walsh, there's a long flight ahead of us." He laughed grabbing her hand and leading her downstairs.

* * *

Hours later the trio landed in Hong Kong. Tired after the long flight they made their way to the baggage claim. Kelly leaned back against Brandon as they waited for it to jump to life. Her back was killing her after the long flight.

"Do you realize that next year when we come here, we'll have a baby with us?" He whispered into her ear, his hands finding their place on her belly.

Kelly nodded, smiling absently as she placed her hands on top of his.

Leaning against the trolley Erin watched the two of them from the corner of her eye. In the last weeks this was a common sight to anyone who was around them. Brandon's hands on Kelly's belly, like he was trying to make sure that her and the baby were safe. "Just stay like this and you don't have to say anything to Brandon's parents. They'll figure it out by themselves." Erin said dryly, grinning sheepishly when the two of them glanced her way. She really enjoyed living with them, the feeling of normalcy after the wild ride that her own parents put her through. Sometimes she had to chuckle inside when her friends complained that their parents cared too much and set rules and boundaries, she was just glad that someone finally did.

She was torn out from her thoughts when Brandon placed their suitcases on the trolley, taking it from her as the three of them headed outside the baggage claim. They found Jim easily and the four of them chatted happily during the drive to the Walsh's home.

"I think I'll love it here." Erin noted looking at the scenery outside.

Jim smiled while driving. "The first time I came here, the city felt so familiar. It still feels familiar, but after years here, I can say it's completely different to Los Angeles."

"But it must be different in a good way, when you decided to stay." Erin said looking at Jim's reflection in the mirror.

"Yes, it is. It's a nice place to live. But it's too far away from home and our family." Jim admitted.

"Have you ever thought of going back, or moving somewhere else?" Brandon asked, his curiosity awaken by the conversation.

"Yes, we thought about it. Several times actually, but my work is still here and until I'm retired there's no point to speculate." Jim said as he pulled the car into the parking space.

The four of them got off the car and after Brandon and Jim grabbed the suitcases from the trunk of the car, headed inside the house where they were warmly greeted by Cindy Walsh.

After lunch, Erin headed to the room she'd occupy for the next week to unpack her suitcase, while Brandon and Kelly together with Jim and Cindy made themselves comfortable in the living room. Brandon's hand resting around Kelly's shoulders. When the conversation came to Kyle and the new baby Brenda was expecting, Brandon gave her a gentle squeeze and watched her as she smiled at him and nodded softly. As subtle as the hint between the two of them might have been, nothing escaped Cindy Walsh's attention.

Brandon turned away from Kelly and looking at his mother grinned. "Our secret might not be secret anymore." He commented seeing the look on her face before he continued. "Mom, dad…we actually wanted to ask you. What would you think about having another grandchild?" Brandon grinned intertwining his fingers with Kelly's.

"You mean Brenda's & Dylan's?" Jim asked confused looking at Cindy.

"No, Jim. A third one." Cindy said excitedly before she stood up, heading to hug Brandon and Kelly.

"I knew it the moment I saw you today. You're just beaming." Cindy said hugging Kelly. "Congratulations!"

"Thank you!" Kelly said enjoying the moment, they waited so long for.

"How far along are you?" Cindy asked after all the hugs and congratulations were exchanged and they returned back to their places.

"14 weeks." Kelly smiled.

"So, you and Brenda…" Cindy started before Brandon interrupted her.

"Yes, they are both due at beginning of January. I know you're not like one blond friend of ours, but still… No we didn't plan it that way." He grinned pulling Kelly closer to him.

Jim observed the situation in front of him and despite being happy for them, he was somehow disappointed that they haven't told them earlier, but kept the news for themselves. They already knew about Brenda's second baby for several weeks. He excused himself and headed out on the balcony. Minutes later he heard a quiet thump when the glass door closed and Brandon joined him near the railing.

"You seemed rather quiet, dad." He commented looking at the skyline, knowing that something was bothering his father. It didn't take a genius to figure out that it had something to do with the baby.

"You waited a long time to tell us…" Jim said taking a deep breath.

"We wanted to make sure that everything was all right before we told anyone." Brandon intertwined his fingers while leaning against the railing and staring into the distance.

"What do you mean?" He asked confused.

Brandon thought for a moment before speaking up. "There are a lot of things you and mom don't know…" He said quietly taking a deep breath as he continued. "Around a month before we found out that Kelly was pregnant, we were told that we won't be able to have children. I'm not going to get into the details why. Once the pregnancy was confirmed we still remained cautious. It might sound childish and selfish, but we wanted to save ourselves from having to explain anyone anything in case that Kelly lost the baby." Brandon said looking at his father who was now looking directly at him as well.

"In fact she nearly lost the baby at eight weeks, when the whole _"Jackie Taylor drama"_ was at its best. Since then we just took it one day at a time. There was also no other option. Looking at things realistically, this is probably the only time we were able to do it…we wanted to tell you face to face instead of telling you over the phone…even if it took a bit longer." Brandon finished suddenly feeling emotional, the idea that it was very likely their first and last pregnancy was not new to him, but saying it out loud made it much more realistic.

"I nearly ruined that for both of you." Jim admitted, suddenly feeling like a fool. Being disappointed for nothing, when there was so much to celebrate.

"But you didn't, that's the most important thing." Brandon grinned. "Come on, granddad. Erin unpacked her things, and the girls are ready to hit the city." They laughed together heading back inside.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Brandon smiled listening to the muted chatter and laughter that could be heard through the closed balcony door. It was their third day in Hong Kong. With Brenda, Dylan and Kyle arriving the previous day the family was finally complete. He could see his parents genuinely enjoying having them all there at one place at the same time. It made him think about what his father said on the ride from the airport. Kelly, their baby and Erin were his family now, but as his father he'd love it, if his parents and sister with family were not living thousands miles away. The noise level raised as the balcony door opened and closed with Dylan walking over, handing him bottle of beer. "Thanks!" He said taking it from him. "They are enjoying each other." Brandon commented.

"Yeah, they are having great fun. Kyle's already asleep and Erin is entertaining the others with stories about Mrs. Teasley." He grinned.

"High school." Brandon grinned too before a silence set between the two of them, too many memories flooding in, but it was different time now, they were different people.

"I'm really happy that it finally worked out for you and Kelly." Dylan commented.

"You knew?" Brandon asked surprised, referring to Kelly's diagnoses. It was not a suitable conversation topic so there were not many people who knew. Andrea knew because she was Kelly's doctor, he figured out that Donna probably knew as well since her and Kelly were very close, and Steve knew some tidbits, but not the whole story.

Dylan nodded. "She told me. We never got to the point to plan a family for the record, but she thought it was a fair thing to do."

"And you stayed?" Brandon blurted out.

"Yeah, I did." Dylan grinned sipping from his bottle before he became serious. "I was okay with it, I never wanted children. My parents screwed up badly and I was scared that I'll do the same with my kids. It sounds bad, but at that time I was glad that they were probably out of question." He admitted.

"What made you change your mind?" Brandon asked intrigued by the conversation they were having.

"With Brenda it was different. We obviously didn't plan Kyle and honestly it scared the heck out of me when the test was positive, but I somehow instinctively knew that I'll do alright. That I won't make the same mistakes my parents did. I enjoy having the little person in my life. He amazes me every day and I'm sure so will the second baby." He smiled.

"Well your parents couldn't have screwed so badly, when Bren is still with you." Brandon chuckled.

Dylan laughed. "Yeah, it wasn't all bad. But neither of them would get a parent of the year award."

"Watching Kelly go through everything, it was just awful at times. We both wanted a child, but I still felt like a bastard for putting her through all that. The cruise this year, Andrea told us a few days earlier that it was not going to happen….than bam, we came home and we were pregnant." Brandon grinned.

"Yeah, obviously happen at the same time as us." Dylan chuckled.

"You should have heard Steve. He is convinced we planned this."

"I see that he hasn't changed a bit." Dylan said as the two of them sat down on the chairs at the balcony.

"How is his family doing? With his new son and all."

"It's nearly all good now." Brandon took a sip from his bottle. "The first weeks were rough for everyone, Janet took everything badly and the kids picked up the tension between their parents, Noah was still traumatized. With some help after a few weeks everything started to settle down. In the end Janet and Steve were able to discuss everything calmly, what happened between Steve and Clare was a past. If you didn't know, you'd have never guessed that Noah is not Janet's biological child, she makes no differences between the three of them, but she still keeps Clare's memory alive for him. I'd say that Noah brought the family even closer." Brandon finished.

"I'd really like to meet them all, it's been too long." Dylan said.

"You miss LA, don't you?" Brandon asked.

"Yes, I miss the beach, my friends. London is grey, rainy and foggy a complete opposite to Los Angeles. I'd go back in a heartbeat, but my family is in London and they come first." He smiled sadly.

"We have Andrea back, maybe one day we'll have you and Brenda back as well." Brandon grinned.

"Yeah, I'll clink to that." Dylan said raising his half empty bottle.

* * *

Inside Jim and Cindy Walsh excused themselves and headed to bed leaving Kelly, Brenda and Erin alone.

"What do you think it's going on outside on the balcony? They are already out there for over an hour." Kelly asked nibbling on the crackers.

"They are probably having a good talk. They don't see each other that often. That's the downside of living in London, being so far from everyone." Brenda said quietly.

"Why don't you come back?" Erin asked. Suddenly two pairs of eyes on her. "Sorry, I shouldn't have asked anything." She said quietly.

"No worries." Brenda smiled reassuringly. "Well a few months ago I'd have said because of my job, but now." She rubbed her belly. "Maybe now it's the right time to go back. Dylan would love that, he always wanted to go home, teach Kyle surfing, be closer to our friends."

"So are you really considering coming back to Los Angeles?" Kelly grinned.

"Yes. We had a talk with Dylan last week, he told me it's my decision and I think I already made it." Brenda grinned too. "I already had my dream come true in London, being here with everyone just made me realize how much I miss my friends and God knows my life will be much more entertaining having Erin around." She winked at Erin.

"We will finally have everyone back home." Kelly stated hugging Brenda closely.

"Don't say anything to Dylan, girls. I promised we will discuss it after we return from here." Brenda smiled looking at both of them.

"No worries, our lips are tied." Kelly grinned looking at Erin who nodded in agreement.

* * *

An hour later Brandon quietly slipped into the bed next to Kelly. He was surprised when she turned around to face him.

"Hey! Did you have fun with Dylan?" She asked quietly and he could tell that she was smiling.

"It was nice catching up. I miss having him around." Brandon said wrapping his arms around her. "I heard, you had fun with Bren, Erin and my parents."

"I did. It was a great evening." She grinned snuggling closer to him.

Brandon leaned in and kissed her forehead. "You never told me Dylan knew." He felt her shrug her shoulders.

"We were together…I thought he had a right to know." She said quietly.

Brandon pulled her face closer and kissed her softly. "I'm not having a go at you, I was just surprised he knew." He said laying on his back, pulling Kelly with him.

She made herself comfortable in his arms, laying her head on his shoulder. "It does not matter who knows and who doesn't, it was me and you that went through everything and in a few months we'll finally have our baby with us."

Brandon took a deep breath, before he pulled her even closer kissing her. "I couldn't have said it better." He said softly as they pulled apart. "I love you so much, Kelly."

"I love you too." She smiled leaning down to kiss him. She giggled softly when he pressed her into the sheets deepening the kiss. "Your parents are next door."

"You're not helping the mood, Kel." Brandon commented trailing soft kisses down her neck.

"Oh, so we have a mood happening here." Kelly bit her lip, trying to keep it quiet as Brandon found the special spot on her neck.

"Mhm." Brandon mumbled continuing what he started.


	12. Chapter 12

_A/N: Third update in a week, sometimes I surprise even myself. I hope you're still enjoying the story and I promise some more drama to come after all that buffer._

* * *

**Chapter 12**

Kelly sat on the table in ultrasound room staring into the distance. She felt like throwing up, with her anxiety reaching a new level she wished Andrea would hurry up. It was time for her 20 weeks ultrasound and while she felt excitement that they'll see their baby, being her worrying self, she couldn't help the feelings of fear and worry that something might be wrong. Briefly closing her eyes to steady herself she felt Brandon press his lips on her forehead and rubbing her bare belly. "Everything will be okay." He said quietly, knowing what was going on in her mind.

Opening her eyes she looked at him a soft smile on her lips. He gave her a wink, keeping his arm placed on her now round belly. Through everything he has been just amazing, washing all her insecurities away, loving and supporting her. Kelly brought his face closer, kissing him softly.

That's how Andrea found them walking into the room seconds later. She smiled at the sight of her two friends. "Good morning, you two!" She said closing the door behind her.

"Hi, Andrea!" Brandon straighten himself up giving her a hug.

"You look great, Kelly!" Andrea exclaimed as the two of them hugged too.

"Thanks, Andrea! I just wish the heat wave would pass already, Brandon and Erin are probably going to freeze with the air conditioning set so low." Kelly giggled.

"Oh, yeah…the joys of being pregnant in the middle of heat wave." Andrea grinned. "At least the weather should be cooler once you hit the last weeks."

"I hope so, otherwise we're really going to freeze." Brandon chuckled.

"Poor baby." Kelly giggled looking at him.

"So, have you two decided if you want to find out the gender?" Andrea asked changing the topic.

"Nope, it's still a sore point." Brandon commented. He wanted to find out, but Kelly was deadly set on a delivery surprise.

"Can you please write it down for us? That way Brandon can look without me knowing if he wants to." Kelly sighed looking at him.

"Sure. I'll tell you when you need to close your eyes during the ultrasound." Andrea said preparing everything. "Now lay back, Kel."

Kelly did as she was told, shivering slightly when Andrea applied the cool gel on her belly. Both she and Brandon looked in amazement once their baby became visible on the screen.

"It looks you're going to have a thumb sucker." Andrea commented as they watched the baby.

Kelly felt the tears forming in her eyes, it felt so real now. It was their baby. "Is everything alright?" She asked.

"Everything looks great, it's head, heart, lungs, kidneys everything looks all right. You have a healthy baby in there." She assured them. "Now close your eyes so I can get the sneak peek for you." She grinned.

Minutes later Andrea handed them the envelope with the gender as well as some photos of their baby.

"Thanks, Andrea! We'll see you tomorrow at five." Kelly said hugging her.

"Yes, Peach Pit, we'll be there. When are they landing?" She asked.

"Around 10 am, Brandon is going to pick them up at the airport." Kelly smiled.

"You're excited to have her home." Andrea commented looking at Brandon.

"Very much so, it's high time they came back. Step two, get my parents back. With three grandchildren it won't be that hard. The temptation is there." He grinned before he hugged her goodbye as well. "Thanks, Andrea!"

They left the office hand in hand with Kelly carrying the envelope and pictures.

"So, what are we going to do?" Brandon asked pointing to the envelope in her hand.

She handed it to him. "You can look, but you have to promise, not to let it slip in front of me. I still don't want to know."

"Alright." Brandon said sliding the envelope into his pocket.

Walking out of the hospital and into the parking lot, Kelly asked. "So are you going to look at it?"

"Probably. But not when you are around." He smiled opening the car door for her.

"Oh, okay." She said before getting into the car.

He grinned walking to the driver's side, he was slowly getting her exactly where he wanted. He knew that although she was deadly set on not finding out, there was a part of her that was dying to know who was in there. The drive back home was a quiet one with Kelly being lost in her thoughts.

"Do you want to do some baby shopping since we both have a day off?" Brandon asked keeping his eyes on the road.

"We can have a look. It won't hurt." Kelly shrugged.

Half an hour later they were walking through the aisles between all the colorful bedding, various cribs, changing tables, clothes and other baby gear.

"Anything you like?" Brandon asked looking at her intently.

"Not really. I never realized how hard it will be shopping without knowing the gender." She admitted.

"You can still change your mind." Brandon suggested patting his pocket where he placed the envelope with gender.

Kelly smirked raising her eyebrow. "You wouldn't do this deliberately, so you can persuade me to find out."

"Mrs. Walsh, what do you think of me?" He touched his heart playfully pretending to be shocked.

Kelly laughed, placing her hands on her hips, licking her lips. "Give me the envelope." She said suddenly.

"Are you going to tear it into pieces?" He joked, pulling it out of his pocket.

"Yeah, for 20 seconds I really considered doing that so you will stop this." She giggled at his shocked expression. "No, I'm going to look at the paper inside." She winked at him.

"Finding out in the middle of a baby gear store. How cool." Brandon commented finally handing the envelope to her.

"It's your own fault. You don't give me any other choice." Kelly stated opening the envelope.

He grinned walking behind her and wrapping her arms around her belly, holding her close so they could both see what's written inside. "I'm glad you changed your mind." He whispered.

"Your techniques are working." She chuckled. "Ready?"

"As ready as I can be." Brandon grinned.

Pulling out the paper from the envelope, Kelly's smile matched Brandon's. "We're going to have a little girl!" He mumbled excitedly before he turned her around and kissed her softly in the middle of the store.

* * *

The next day, Kelly, Brandon and Erin walked into Peach Pit being instantly greeted by Noah, Maddie and Jake Sanders as well as Hannah. After hugs and kisses were exchanged the kids returned to their games, Erin and Hannah remained seated at the counter chatting happily, while Kelly and Brandon joined Steve, Janet, Andrea and her boyfriend Jeremy at the table.

"You look great, Kelly. Pregnancy really suits you." Janet commented.

"Thanks, Janet. I feel great most of the time." Kelly smiled.

"You two already know who's on board?" Steve asked curiously.

Brandon looked at Kelly and she nodded slightly. They did not discuss earlier if they'll tell everyone. "We do." He admitted.

"So, are you going to tell us?" Steve pushed.

"You're a big boy Sanders. You can wait until everyone comes here." Brandon grinned. "Besides this is not our night." Brandon pointed out.

"You were always a tease." Steve said pretending to be hurt.

"I see that Brandon won in the end." Andrea smiled changing the topic.

"Yes, he knows how to push the right buttons. Master of persuasion should be his middle name." Kelly giggled watching him smile brightly.

"If I remember correctly, it was you who said that you can't choose anything for the baby without knowing the gender." Brandon commented.

"Oh, right and you wouldn't be the one who suggested doing some baby shopping." She gave him a wink.

"Guilty as charged." Brandon said, resulting into fits of laugher from everyone.

Steve looked at his watch. "You know, you should tell us. They are late so it's their fault."

Janet smacked him playfully. "Behaving like a five-year old again, aren't we?" She teased him.

"That's why you love me, I'm just a big kid." He grinned.

At the same time the door opened and Donna walked in with Ruby in her arms, followed by David with Ryan in infant car seat. Kelly wriggled her forehead watching them together, something was off. She made a mental check to herself, she needed to talk to Donna later on. They were not even properly seated when Brenda, Dylan and Kyle walked into the Peach Pit and warm greetings were exchanged with everyone. After they returned from Hong Kong, Brenda agreed much to Dylan's joy, that they'll reallocate back to Los Angeles. They managed to get everything ready in five short weeks and finally arriving to Los Angeles this morning.

Kelly and Brenda shared laughter when they tried to hug each other with their bellies in the way. "How was the flight?" Kelly asked.

"Long and uncomfortable. But we managed to rest a bit once we arrived at the house. Thanks for setting it up for us." Brenda said.

"You're welcome, I had a blast. Just ask Brandon." Kelly smiled.

"Yeah, speaking of Brandon. I heard that he made you change your mind." Brenda grinned.

"Well he persuaded me in the end." Kelly commented.

"So, am I going to have a niece or a nephew?" Brenda asked. By now everyone was listening to their conversation.

Kelly looked at Brandon making them wait a bit longer.

"This is downright cruel." Steve said. "Come on now, spill the beans."

"Alright." Kelly smiled. "We're having a baby girl."

"I knew it!" Brenda grinned. "Congrats you two! Now I will have at least a niece to buy all the girly stuff for and mom and dad are going to be excited as well a new grandson and granddaughter."

"They were excited." Brandon laughed. "Since they were the last ones to know about the pregnancy, we figured out they could be the first ones to know the gender, so we called them yesterday." Brandon explained wrapping his arm around Kelly's shoulder.

Later that evening Donna and Kelly finally found themselves alone. Watching her friend over the evening Kelly's feeling that something was wrong just increased.

"What's going on, Donna?" Kelly asked quietly.

"Everything's fine." Donna replied playing with the glass in front of her.

"Yes, that's why you and David barely speak to each other and you're avoiding him like a plague." Kelly pushed.

"We had a fight, that's it. Nothing serious." Donna said while she continued to play with her glass.

"Alright. If you need to talk, you know where to find me." Kelly said deciding not to push her friend any further.

"I think David's cheating on me." Donna said quietly after a bit of silence.

Kelly sat there quietly, shocked by what she just heard. "Why do you think so?" She asked.

"He is often working late, comes home when me and the kids are already in bed." Donna said.

"He was always working late." Kelly said quietly. She knew she was on a thin ice, Donna was her best friend and David her brother.

"It's different now, before he at least made an effort to be there. Now it's just like he does not care at all. I tried to talk to him, but it ended in fight. Maybe having second baby so soon was not a smart idea." Donna said quietly, silently wiping away the tears that rolled down her cheeks.

Kelly placed her hand on Donnas' back, patting it gently. She didn't want to jump to any premature conclusion's, but just with a simple question whether David would be capable of an affair, she had to admit that the answer was yes. But then, he loved Donna and he loved their children, why would he do that? She wanted to tell Donna that everything was going to be all right, but she couldn't. "If you two need some time alone to talk, just bring the children over. Alright?"

Donna nodded, still not able to speak. Once she gained back her composure she asked. "How did you know that Brandon was cheating?"

The long forgotten pain came flooding back. "I didn't. I don't think I would have figured it out if she didn't tell me and even then. I wouldn't believe her without hearing the tape. In my mind he wasn't capable of cheating." Kelly shrugged.

"That's the difference. I'm pretty sure that David is capable of doing it. It wouldn't be the first time." Donna stated.

"You were teenagers back then. Now he has so much more to lose. Why would he do that?" Kelly asked.

"I'm trying to figure that one out as well." Donna concluded quietly.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Still half asleep Brandon pulled Kelly closer, nestling them both under the warm sheets. His hand slid from her hip to her belly and he felt a kick at his touch. He smiled softly opening his eyes, realizing that although Kelly was still soundly asleep, their daughter was already awake. Kissing softly Kelly's shoulder he closed his eyes again but kept his hand on her belly waiting for another one. He didn't have to wait too long, as their little girl kicked a storm at his touch.

"Are you two having fun?" Kelly asked. He could hear that she was smiling even before she turned around to see him.

"She started it." Brandon grinned, with an innocent look on his face.

Kelly laughed. "Way to go. Blame it on your unborn daughter." She turned completely around so she was now facing him. Her hand resting under her head, her growing belly pushed into his stomach.

Brandon put his hand back on her belly. "I can't help it. It's just amazing to feel her, I didn't know she was up before you." He grinned.

"Just a few more months and she'll be the boss of the household." Kelly smiled.

"I can't wait." Brandon kissed her softly.

"Me neither." Kelly smiled resting her hand on top of Brandon's. The two of them just laid there for a while enjoying the baby's movements. There were no words needed, they've waited too long for this. Now that it was here they enjoyed every second of the pregnancy, the good, the bad and all the things no one tells you beforehand.

Brandon raised his eyebrows when he heard the doorbell ring. It was still quite early in the morning and they were not expected anyone. Unwillingly both headed out of the bed, their solitude disturbed. Before they could leave the bedroom, there was a knock on the bedroom door. "Come in." Brandon called.

The door opened and Erin popped her head inside. "Sorry to disturb you guys. Donna is downstairs with the kids, she wants to talk to you Kel."

"I'll be down in a few, just grab myself something to wear." Kelly replied.

"Okay, I'll entertain them." Erin closed the door and they could hear her going downstairs.

"This is not going to be pretty." Kelly said under her breath heading to the wardrobe to grab something to wear.

"Did I miss something?" Brandon asked confused, not really understanding what was going on.

Kelly grabbed the clothes and sat on the bed laying them next to her. Brandon's eyes on her the whole time. "The day Brenda and Dylan returned, when we were at Peach Pit. She thinks David is cheating on her." Kelly bit her lip.

"Wow!" Was all that Brandon was able to say.

"She is here, early in the morning with both kids. I think it has something to do with it and I guess the news won't be good." Kelly rubbed her forehead closing her eyes briefly. She felt his lips on her forehead.

"I'll get dressed and take the kids, so you two can talk alone." Brandon said heading to the wardrobe too.

Few minutes later both walked downstairs. After a brief greeting Brandon and Erin took Ruby and Ryan leaving Donna and Kelly alone in the living room. It didn't took a genius to figure out that Kelly's assumptions were right. Donna looked tired and all cried out. As the door closed tears started to stream down her face, her whole body shaking.

"He did it Kel." She said, her voice barely audible.

Wrapping her arms around her, Kelly let her cry in a way feeling her pain. Soothingly stroking her back. It took a few minutes until Donna gained her composure. Kelly handed her a box with tissues and they both leaned back against the sofa before Donna started to talk.

"For a few weeks I had a feeling that something was going on, but until today he denied everything. When I was doing laundry today, I found a receipt from Bel Age hotel in his pocket, dated two days ago. You know me…I confronted him about it and he admitted that he had an affair. He claims it happened around a month ago, it was a one night stand, but I'm not sure about that. The receipt was dated freaking two days ago." Donna sniffled, wiping away the tears that were again streaming down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry, Donna." Kelly caressing her arm, not sure what to do to help her friend. This was one of the moments when she hated that their group was so tight-knit. Donna was her best friend and they were talking about her half-brother who did the cheating.

"That was not the end." Donna continued quietly. "It just got better from that moment." She smiled sadly. "He cheated on me with Valerie."

"Valerie? As Valerie Malone?" Kelly asked shock visible on her face.

Donna nodded sadly. "They met when he was in New York a month ago, she's managing one of the new acts David is producing."

Kelly just stared at her completely speechless. Of all the people out there and even after the years of hater between the two of them, she did not expect to hear Valerie's name in the conversation she and Donna were having. She came to Donna & David's wedding, it wasn't like she didn't know that they were married.

Donna sniffled again, but continued speaking, pulling out the last big gun. "Despite everything, sleeping with her was not the worst thing he could do… She's pregnant and the child is his, that's why she apparently showed up two days ago, to tell him. Until two days ago it was just his self-reproach killing him, now there is a baby added there as well." Donna finished, feeling completely exhausted.

Staring at Donna, Kelly still couldn't bring herself to say a word. This sounded like a nightmare, she wanted to pinch herself hoping that she would wake up and all she heard in the last minutes was just figment of her imagination. Hearing Donna sob again, she wrapped her arms around her friend letting her cry. As she felt her shaking and the reality started to sink in, all she wanted to do was go, find David and kick his ass. Growing up with his father he had more than enough opportunities to witness where cheating will lead, but he obviously haven't learned his lesson, when all it took were 6 years and he followed in his father's footsteps.

"What are you going to do?" Kelly asked as Donna calmed down again.

"I don't know." Donna shrugged her shoulders. "As we speak, David is moving out. We definitely need some time apart to figure things out."

"You can stay here, if you want." Kelly offered.

Donna shook her head. "I don't think I'd be a good guest. Besides, you already have Erin here, new baby on the way… He's moving away so I have some space and the kids stay in their familiar environment."

Kelly nodded. "Whenever you need someone to talk, just call and I'll be there. Okay?"

Donna smiled weakly and nodded. Pulling her legs to her she asked. "I know that it's an ancient history now, but when you found out about Brandon…. Is it wrong that after everything David did to me and despite it being so fresh…there is a part of me that still loves him?"

"No, it's not wrong." Kelly sighed looking away for a moment. "At that moment I felt hurt, hater, I felt ashamed…but when I saw him standing there with tears in his eyes I also felt love. It scared the daylights out of me so I ran as fast and as far as I could. I needed to protect myself and figure things out on my own. In the end the feeling of love was the strongest one." Kelly said playing with the rings on her finger.

"Do you trust him? The same way as before it happened?" Donna quizzed.

"We were in a different place as you are…" Kelly sighed. "Yes, I learned to trust him again. Since we got together again he did not gave me any reason not to trust him." She said looking at Donna.

Donna nodded again. "I guess I need to figure these things out on my own, we're not teenagers anymore. It's not just about me and David, there are now two children added into the quotation."

"Yes, there are two children, but you still have to choose what's best for you. If you choose to stay with him just because of the children, you will be miserable and in the end they will be miserable as well." Kelly reasoned.

"That's true." Donna admitted.

"But let's not think about that today. It's still fresh." Kelly proposed.

"You're right, it's still new…but just telling it all to someone helped." Donna smiled weakly. "And let's not forget there are still some unknowns, like what David wants…and the baby." She sighed feeling the tears again in her eyes, for a few moments she forgot that there will be a lifelong reminder of David's affair. She whipped the tears away quickly. "Sorry, I can't help it. I just became mushy overnight."

"You can cry all you want." Kelly said rubbing her arm again. "Did you have breakfast before you left?" Kelly asked after Donna calmed down again.

"Not really." Donna shook her head. "I just grabbed the kids and we left."

"Let's go than, Brandon is making chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast. Ideal comfort food." Kelly smiled helping Donna up from the sofa.

"Shouldn't I be helping you up from the sofa?" Donna giggled for the first time since she came.

"Just wait a few weeks and we will get there." Kelly smiled.

Arriving in the kitchen they saw Erin feeding Ruby some pancakes, Ryan soundly asleep in his car seat and Brandon finishing the last batch of the pancakes. He and Kelly exchanged a quick glance as she walked in and he immediately understood that no questions should be asked. The breakfast was mostly a silent affair, soon after Donna and the kids left and Erin went upstairs to finish her homework as they wanted to go down to the beach in the afternoon.

"So?" Brandon asked as he and Kelly were finally alone.

"It's a mess." Kelly sighed.

"Did he cheat on her?" Brandon quizzed his eyes glued on Kelly, who was sitting on the bar stool playing with her glass filled with icy water.

"Yes, he did. He also got the other girl pregnant." Kelly said squirming in her seat hoping that this will satisfy Brandon's curiosity.

"I'd say mess is an understatement in this case." He sat next to Kelly with his cup of coffee.

She just nodded quietly without any further comment. She was not ready to tell him who the other girl was. When it came to Valerie, their opinions about her couldn't differ more and she was not really sure how Brandon will take the news.

"But that's not everything right?" Brandon pushed.

"What do you mean?" Kelly asked looking at him.

"You know who the other girl is." He commented.

Now she was in a position she never wanted to be. How could he know that? Was he eavesdropping? Or did Valerie tell him something? They were still in touch, she knew about it. "Yes, I do."

"So?" He pushed.

Kelly just felt the anger rise in her when she was pushed into the corner. "Do I have to freaking tell you everything? This is not some soap opera to gossip about, but our friend being cheated on." She stormed out of the kitchen.

Brandon sat there stunned by her reaction, this was not like Kelly. She was usually not the type to yell and run. He finished his coffee giving her some time to calm down before he headed upstairs to find her. He looked into their bedroom but she was not there. He could hear Erin on the phone so she wasn't there either. He finally found her in the unfinished nursery, sitting in the rocking chair near the window, gazing into the distance. He saw the tear tracks on her cheeks and couldn't help but wonder when Donna and David's problems became their own.

"I'm sorry Kelly." He offered. "I shouldn't have pushed you. I just thought since the morning was so emotionally draining you would want to talk." He could see her now looking at him.

She nodded quietly, staring in the distance debating whether to tell him. At some point he was going to find anyway, he could hear it from her as well. "It's Valerie." She said quietly. Raising her eyes she was met with Brandon's blank stare as he processed the information she offered.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Brandon nervously tapped the tips of his fingers against the table. He had to lie to Kelly about this dinner, something he never does and he already felt guilty about it. It took no genius to figure out that him meeting the other woman in the Donna vs. David saga would not make her happy. The last thing he wanted right now was to upset her. She was rather good at it herself so there was no point in adding to it. Her relationship with Valerie was never good, he had to admit that she tolerated her just because of him and the same was true the other way around. After the last events she liked her even less, if that was even possible. After the news about the affair spread out like a wildfire there were not many people who had a good word left for Valerie, but that came as no surprise given the circumstances. Initially Brandon was on the same boat with everyone, but after some days he felt that he had to hear also the other side of the story. He had this feeling that he owed it to her after all those years they were friends.

True to her habits Valerie arrived late at the restaurant. The greeting between her and Brandon was probably as awkward as the situation was. They exchanged a small talk and Brandon was relieved when the waiter arrived to take the order. Just after five minutes with her he already questioned his decision, maybe this was not a smart idea after all.

"Does Kelly know you're meeting me tonight?" Valerie asked as soon as the waiter left their table.

"No." Brandon admitted.

Valerie leaned back against the chair a grin on her face. "So, you lied to her."

"Yes and no, she knows I'm having a dinner with someone." Brandon said again tapping his fingers against the table.

"She'll still be furious if she finds out it was me." Valerie shrugged the evil grin still plastered on her face.

"And the point is?" Brandon asked not really understanding where this was heading.

"I'm sure right now she's having a field day, telling everyone how right she was about me and what a bitch I am sleeping with her step-brother or whatever their relation is, who happens to be husband of her best friend. So, yeah…if there is something that will make her mad, I take it." Valerie said taking a sip from her water.

Brandon just shook his head. He knew that Valerie was no angel, he lost that illusion years ago, but the malice in her words still surprised him. "We're not in high school, Valerie."

"Some things never change." She smirked.

"Obviously not." Brandon rolled his eyes getting annoyed.

"You can't deny that she hated me from day one." Valerie decided to play the victim.

"You're unbelievable." Brandon just shook his head not really liking where this conversation was heading. "For years I was trying to smooth things out for you, it was a waste of time. You haven't learned a thing the whole time. All you do is deliberately hurt people around you."

Valerie laughed loudly drawing the attention of people sitting at the nearby tables. "I guess I should now worship you every day until the end of my life." She said ironically before she continued. "I never asked you to, I'm a big girl and can take care of myself. I don't need you to smooth things out for me, I don't need your friends to accept me. You think you're better than me? Surprise, surprise…you're not. You had an affair as well, the fact that she forgave you does not make it any better or does not make you a better person. You have no right to judge me or my actions."

"I never said I was the better person. But I managed to learn from my mistakes and that's the difference between the two of us. I wanted to meet you, because I thought I owed it to you, but now I see I don't owe you anything. Have a nice life" Brandon said, his voice cold, before he stood up and left the table. Heading outside he quickly paid the bill leaving the restaurant, Valerie left there stunned. She pushed too far this time.

* * *

It was nearly midnight when Brandon turned the car into the driveway of Casa Walsh. After he left the restaurant he drove to the beach. He needed some time alone to calm down and gather his thoughts. Sitting there on the cold sand, watching the waves coming onto the shore he lost track of the time. Getting out of the car he was surprised when he noticed the kitchen light still on. He thought both Erin and Kelly will be asleep by now. Walking inside the kitchen he was met with Kelly's glance. She smiled seeing him.

He was relieved seeing that she was not mad at him. "Hey!" He said softly kissing her forehead. "Isn't it time for sleep?"

"It is, I'm trying to explain it to your daughter. She thinks it's time for soccer practice instead." Kelly chuckled.

Brandon slipped his hand on her tummy and grinned. "No kidding. There's no way to sleep with so much movement."

"Yup, that's why I gave up about half an hour ago and came back downstairs." Kelly commented. She watched Brandon as he poured himself a glass of water and sat on the bar stool next to her. "How did the dinner go?" She asked.

"It was okay." He blurted out quickly, maybe too quickly.

Kelly raised her eyebrows and studied his face. She knew him all too well and just by a simple look knew that it was not okay.

Brandon looked at her and saw that she was studying him. It was clear that he was in trouble. "Yeah, it was not okay." He admitted making Kelly laugh.

"You shouldn't even try to lie, you're not very good at it." She grinned taking a sip of her icy water. "So she hasn't changed a bit?" Kelly asked.

"She? How do you know it was a she?" Brandon asked a small grin on his face.

"Educated guess?" Kelly shrugged looking at him.

"So, you knew the whole time that I was having dinner with Valerie and you just sat and let me squirm and torture myself?" Brandon asked surprised.

"Something like that." Kelly grinned. "Since the day Donna told me, I was sure that at some point you will want to meet her and talk to her."

"Sometimes it scares me, how good you know me." Brandon laughed.

"It's easy. You are an open book." Kelly shrugged taking another sip of her water.

Brandon smiled at her answer. "Coming back to your question, no she hasn't changed a bit. She thinks you're having a field day now."

Kelly laughed. "It just shows how little she knows about me and how much she thinks about herself."

"The child will be your nephew or niece." Brandon quipped.

"Which at this point means basically nothing. David screw up really badly this time, if the time comes to choose sides, I know which one I'll choose." Kelly said quietly.

"It's too early to make any premature conclusions." Brandon said looking at her.

Kelly nodded before she spoke again. "Yes, it's up to them. But I'm not sure if I can look at David the same way I did before. He went too far this time."

Brandon knew that there was no point to argue with her in situation like this. She already made up her mind and there was no way to change it. "Is it how Donna thought of me when I cheated on you?" He blurted out.

Kelly smiled mischievously. "I guess so. Let's say you were not in her good books at that time."

"How about now?" He grinned.

"The last I heard, you were awesome." Kelly winked at him.

"Sounds better." Brandon laughed. "Come on, let's get you two in bed." He said as he hopped down from the bar stool.

"I'll be beaten up tomorrow again. I just hope that once she's here she won't think it's playtime at this hour." Kelly giggled.

"Did she calm down a bit?" Brandon asked taking her hand as they headed upstairs.

"Yes, she's now probably asleep. It looks that she was missing you." Kelly smiled walking into their bedroom.

"Too bad, I was hoping I'll get a kick or two before we go to sleep." Brandon grinned closing the bedroom door behind them.

Kelly giggled climbing into the bed. "I'll wait for you." She said snuggling into the sheets as Brandon headed into the bathroom. Coming out minutes later he found her already soundly asleep. Climbing into the bed next to her he turned the lights off and snuggled her closer falling asleep almost immediately.


	15. Chapter 15

_A/N: I felt like writing today. So after I finished previous chapter, I wrote also this one and since they are both short you are in for a double treat :) _

* * *

**Chapter 15**

Few weeks later the life in the Walsh household returned nearly to normalcy. With Kelly only a bit over six weeks shy of her due date it was about to change again, once their baby girl will make her appearance. Kelly grinned rubbing her swollen belly as her daughter kicked a storm at her touch. She was an active baby for sure, but Kelly rarely complained about that. Feeling her baby girl move, kick and stretch herself inside her belly was the most amazing feeling she ever felt and it also had a calming effect on her knowing that everything was all right.

She smiled when she saw Erin walking into the kitchen and plopping herself on one of the bar stools. "I thought you'd want to go to one of your friends houses since it's Friday evening." Kelly commented.

"Nah, I just want to enjoy a quiet evening with you and Brandon. Maybe we can watch movie?" Erin asked.

"Sounds good to me. Maybe we will even get to watch some chick flick, Brandon will be beaten up by the time he comes back home, so he won't protest much." Kelly grinned.

"Sounds like a plan." Erin laughed. "What's for dinner?"

"Lasagna, garlic bread and salad. Apple crisp for desert. How does that sound?"

"Yummy!"

"I never thought I'd enjoy cooking this much." Kelly laughed.

"To be honest, I never thought I'd see you enjoy it so much." Erin smirked.

"Comes with the territory I guess." Kelly said rubbing her belly again.

"Have you heard anything about mom?" Erin changed the subject.

"Yes." Kelly admitted moving as quickly as she could to the oven and removing the garlic bread from it. She was not sure if she wanted to have this conversation with her sister tonight.

"How is she doing?" Erin asked quietly.

Kelly sighed. "Depends from which angle you look at it. She's still drinking, last I heard one of her drinking buddies moved in with her. The place is apparently a mess and she is already on non-speaking terms with all her neighbors." She summed it up quickly.

"I thought that at some point she'd stop it." Erin offered.

Kelly just shook her head. "It's an addiction and with each passing day she's just falling deeper into it. There's no turning back unless she decides to get the help she needs. No one can force her."

"Was it like this also the first time?" Erin asked remembering her conversation with Kelly on her first night at Casa Walsh.

Kelly nodded silently, occupying herself with chopping the vegetables for salad. She hated thinking back about the times when her mother was so drunk or drugged up that she could barely stand up from her bed. She thought that once she remarried and had Erin those times were gone forever. Slowly over the years things spiraled out of control and here she was raising her own sister, because her mother was again too drunk and maybe drugged up that she was unable to do so.

She quickly wiped away the tear that fell down her cheek. She was about to become mother herself in a few weeks and although she was sure that Brandon will be there to help and Erin as well to some degree, she was sure that in the first weeks with a new baby she'll need a mother guidance. It was clear that with her mother preoccupied with her alcohol addiction and Brandon's mom thousands of miles away, she'll get none of it.

Turning away from Erin she again wiped away the tears. She didn't want her sister to see that she was a mess. It was something she kept inside, not even Brandon knew about her fear from a lack of a mother figure once their baby girl will come. She felt Erin wrap her arms around her.

"I'm sorry, Kel. I didn't want to make her cry, I just wanted to know if…" Erin choked feeling the tears now streaming down her cheeks to.

"If what?" Kelly asked turning around to face her sister, there was no point in hiding her tears anymore they were both crying.

"If it was my fault. If it's something I've done that caused it." Erin said quietly.

Kelly took a deep breath. "Don't even think about it Erin, it's not your fault." Kelly assured her. In the last weeks she was so wrapped up in the preparations for the new baby and the turmoil about Donnas failing marriage that she paid less attention to her sister. She should have noticed earlier on that something was bothering her. Thinking about it again, they never properly discussed the situation with her mother, except the first night she came to live with them. She wrapped her arms around her sister and hugged her as much as her expanding belly allowed her to. "I'm sorry, Erin. We should have talked about this already months ago."

"It's not your fault, I should have come to you and talk about it. But I was scared that you'd think I'm being childish." Erin tried to explain.

"I don't think there is anything childish about it. Whenever you need to talk, you can come to me. Okay?" Kelly said wiping away Erin's tears.

Erin nodded, smiling softly. "I'm glad you're my sister."

"I can say the same thing about you." Kelly grinned. "Now let's get this dinner finished and call the husband of mine to hurry up before it gets cold."

"Do you need any help?" Erin asked.

"You can finished the salad and I'll check the lasagna and set the table." Kelly smiled.

* * *

Brandon finally turned the light in his office off, long day behind him. He was tired and hungry and couldn't wait to be back home. Walking towards the elevator his cell phone started to ring, he smiled when the caller ID popped up on the screen. "Hi Kel!...Already on my way….Yeah, see you in fifteen minutes…Love you too!"

He grinned pushing the cell back into his pocket while waiting for the elevator to come. Once downstairs he exchanged nice weekend wishes with Becky at the front desk and headed to the glass door and out of the building. The sky was colored in all shades of red and purple as the sun was setting down. Nearing his car he was too wrapped up in watching the sky and it all happened so quickly that he did not notice the car driving off the road and on the pavement. He heard the screams and quickly turned around before pain jolted through his body followed by darkness.


End file.
